What do readers think of Still Life Las Vegas by James Sie? Write your own review.

This quirky, strange, sometimes-confusing debut novel doesn't seem to know what it wants to be when it grows up. I agree with others that the writing is good and the reading experience was definitely interesting, but I ultimately found the book to be quite dark and sad with little resolution for the characters or the reader. James Sie stuffed way too many concepts, themes, and plots into this one novel between the family curse, issues of race, adoption, competitive accordion playing, Liberace, mythology, coming of age as a homosexual, mental health issues, immigration, Las Vegas, and Greek culture. Because of this breadth, the depth was missing and I was disappointed that characters who seemed quite intriguing were left relatively undeveloped. I suspect that this novel could have been excellent with a bit more focus. The pages here and there in graphic novel format further added to the chaos. Maybe if the entire book had been written as a graphic novel with the wonderful illustrations of Sungyoon Choi, the unbelievability and expansive nature of the story would have seemed at home.

I was overwhelmed by the sadness surrounding Walt, the main character, throughout this book. He is a 17-year-old dealing with the tragic death of his younger sister, the disappearance of his mother and the deep depression of his father, which makes Walt the dispenser of meds and the breadwinner. He is a talented, gay artist who left high school early to avoid the bullying he received.
With plenty of spare time he discovers and is entranced by the living statues at Venice Venice, formerly the Venetian. He is there every day sketching them and falling in love. When he finally meets Chrysto, they spend their making love or with Chrysto posing naked for Walt. This is the best time of his life, but it all goes wrong.
When he discovers other devastating truths about his past, he rides out of Vegas on the scooter Chrysto left behind to build a new life.
The writing is very good and you will be amazed by the illustrations. If you can handle the depressing tone, it is a very different read that others may appreciate.

I found the book to be rather depressing. It was hard to follow at first with each chapter being written from a different point of view but it became easier as I got further into the story. Definitely explored the seedy side of Vegas and the selfishness of human nature. if you're looking for a light beach read this isn't it

The book was somewhat interesting, but it kept me confused each time it changed people, locations & time frames. Hopping, from one to another, made me forget who was doing what.

I found the story pretty sad, for the most part, and was disappointed at the way things turned out.

I'm sure there is an audience for this book, as there are several interesting things in it. It just wasn't my "thing".

As a resident of Henderson, Nevada, close enough to Las Vegas that I always end up there somewhere, either in errands or occasionally on the Strip, I can say that James Sie's "Still Life Las Vegas" is partly accurate with its puzzling structure. This story of Walter Stahl inadvertently finding himself while searching for his missing mother could very well happen here, and certainly the statues at the Venetian in Chrysto and Acacia do occasionally appear there, but it would have worked better if it had kept to the "realistic" Las Vegas instead of overdramatically destroying part of the Venetian and it being rebuilt as Venice Venice. There's enough stories to be found in Las Vegas every minute, weird enough on their own, that Walter could have fit in very well without such embellishments.

Overall, Sie has a potentially good thing going, once you find the pieces of it outside the flashbacks and Greek myth noise.

Still Life Las Vegas is a compelling book to read because James Sie has a good comedic way with words. He is clever, concise and nails images and situations with spot-on delivery. The book, however, changes direction when it comes to the "still life". The section of Walter's life with his parents and his escape to Las Vegas are intriguing and I read them with relish. Learning about the Greek "stiff life" development was also interesting, however, when Walter realizes his "sexual awakening", I was ready to put the book down. This part was just too unrealistic and creepy. The drawings were definitely fun to decipher and added to the strangeness of the book. It was both fun to read and dark in its contents. Not sure I would recommend this book to my bookclub. They are a lot more mainstream than Still Life Las Vegas.

I found this to be a slight strange book. It started off well about a search by a son whose life seems to be consumed by the mother who deserted him at age 5 and dealing with a mentally ill father who seems to have give up on life. Mixed in are comic book-like illustrations. Just couldn't get into this book; I finished it but I wouldn't recommend it.