Home Feed
Home
Search
Search
Add Review, Blurb, Quote
Add
Activity
Activity
Profile
Profile
The Last Days of Video
The Last Days of Video: A Novel | Jeremy Hawkins
17 posts | 12 read | 33 to read
The video stores are dying. But most of you dont care. Youve got your Netflix and your Redbox and your DVR, so why deal with VHS tapes or scratched DVDs? Why deal with the grumpy guy at the worn-down independent video store? Well that grumpy guy is Waring Wax, and hes usually too drunk to worry about his declining business at Star Video, let alone his quickly evolving extinction in popular culture. But everything changes in his small college town when a bright and shiny Blockbuster Video opens nearby: Clearly, this means war. So, Waring enlists the help of his two reluctant employees, wildly sexy Alaura and desperate virgin Jeffwho are almost as nuts as he isto hatch a series of wild schemes to save their little store and fight against the corporate invaders. Together, these three misfits try to save Star Video while confronting, among other things, Warings self-destructive tendencies, a life training cult, corporate bicycle gangs, and a Hollywood director who constantly sees the ghost of Alfred Hitchcock while in town shooting his latest film. The Last Days of Video is a hilarious elegy for a bygone era, a quirky and charming story of redemption for a group of
Amazon Indiebound Barnes and Noble WorldCat Goodreads LibraryThing
Pick icon
100%
blurb
vivastory
post image

#AlphabetGame
Title that begins with the letter L
Lots to choose from for L. I'm going a different route & focusing on 3 very different, yet equally brilliant, books that ALL begin with the phrase, “The Last Days of:“
Arnopp's Last Days of Jack Sparks is one of my favorite epistolary horror novels & one of the most frightening. It has a lot to say about social media & it says it in a smart way.
Miéville's Last Days of New Paris is a brilliant👇

vivastory novella about the French Resistance, including living Surrealist artwork. Strange & memorable,outside of a few short stories this was my first encounter with Miéville's longer works & I was an immediate convert.
Hawkins' Last Days of Video. Waring Wax, antisocial proprietor of indie video rental store Star Video is forced to face the changing landscape of movie rental when a Blockbuster opens down the street. This book has felt relevant since I
2y
vivastory first read it 5 years ago but I have thought of it several times over the past couple of weeks in light of the HBO Max/Discovery merger. It is worth googling this book as it has one of the most unique designs of any book I own. It really does look like a VHS. 2y
KathyWheeler @vivastory My favorite book of Mieville‘s is The City and the City. I haven‘t finished The Last Days of New Paris yet though. 2y
vivastory @KathyWheeler City & the City is a favorite of mine too. I also loved his short story collection 2y
45 likes4 comments
review
CoffeeNBooks
post image
Pickpick

This one was between so-so and a pick for me, but it grew on me the more I read, so I decided to give it a pick.

Megabooks That cover is great! 2y
61 likes1 comment
review
keithmalek
post image
Pickpick

The ending was a bit hurried, lazy, and unrealistic. But I enjoyed the journey, and I still recommend this one.

quote
keithmalek
post image

quote
keithmalek

"Naps make people happy. Children, on average, miserable."

blurb
Birdsong28
post image

I am using the tagged book for this prompt for my #popsugarchallenge

BarbaraBB Well chosen! Quite nostalgic indeed! 4y
40 likes1 comment
review
Birdsong28
post image
Pickpick

Good. Interesting characters and concept and it took me back to my childhood and teenage years of having to go to the video store and pick out a movie. Hard to get into at first but once I did I really enjoyed it.

#SoftSkullPress
#Counterpoint

blurb
MicheleinPhilly
post image
vivastory Such a great cover. I loved the book, too. 5y
MicheleinPhilly @vivastory I still haven‘t read it. #WhatElseIsNew 5y
vivastory If it makes you feel any better I've only read 1 of the 6 books I've posted for #covercrush 😬 5y
See All 7 Comments
MicheleinPhilly @vivastory 😂😂😂 Sounds about right! 5y
LeahBergen And now I‘m singing “Video Killed the Radio Star”. 😆 5y
MicheleinPhilly @LeahBergen You‘re welcome! 5y
Reviewsbylola Oooooh love this! 5y
71 likes7 comments
review
Hooked_on_books
post image
Pickpick

It‘s 2007 and Waring, the curmudgeonly owner of Star Video, feels a sense of dread when he sees Blockbuster move into town. From that fabulous cover to the movie/tv references of the chapter titles, this is a fun book. It has the charm of High Fidelity alongside the cheek of Grady Hendrix (without the horror).

#ReadingUSA2019 #NorthCarolina

erinreads That cover is *chef kiss*! 😍 5y
Librarybelle Oh! Sounds interesting...stacking this! 5y
64 likes5 stack adds2 comments
review
Sarz
post image
Pickpick

4 ⭐
I feel like I'm not a big enough movie fanatic for this; I'm sure there were so many movie references that just went over my head. However, it was an easy and funny read.

CoffeeNBooks Sounds like fun book! I miss walking through the aisles of the video store to see what they had! 5y
Sarz @CoffeeNBooks It definitely has a strong sense of nostalgia! 5y
thegreensofa Hi @Sarz just wondering if you have got your #lmpbc parcels okay? I sent them a week ago express it‘s meant to be overnight 😬. I haven‘t seen a post to say you got them do I need to chase them up for you?😳📭 xx 5y
15 likes1 stack add3 comments
blurb
Purrfectpages
Last Days of Video | Jeremy Hawkins
post image
TrishB Great picks 👍🏻 6y
Cinfhen Love this❣️❣️❣️well played 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 6y
cathysaid The Last Days of Cafe Leila is so good, especially on audio. 6y
67 likes1 stack add3 comments
review
vivastory
post image
Pickpick

At the novel's opening a new Blockbuster store has opened right down the street from independent Star Video. Set in 2007, when video stores had already been affected by redbox & streaming technologies were being developed. Hawkins' book is a wonderful & moving tribute to indie video stores (record stores suffered a similar fate) & their eccentric & occasionally irascible staff for whom movies were their life's passion.

MicheleinPhilly I think I'm going to buy this one based on the cover alone. 7y
LeahBergen Great review. 👍🏼 7y
vivastory @MicheleinPhilly it's easily one of the most unique designs in my collection (aside from penguin deluxe editions) @LeahBergen Thank you! 7y
See All 12 Comments
RohitSawant Awesome review! Stacked! 7y
merelybookish There was a great video rental place on Gregory in KC that closed a few years ago. They managed to outlast Blockbuster. Great selection and super quirky. 7y
vivastory @merelybookish SRO? I would always go there when I lived in westport ('03-08) Amazing store 7y
merelybookish @vivastory Yes SRO! ☺️ I couldn't remember its name. 7y
Hooked_on_books Sounds like fun! 7y
batsy Your review has convinced me! Adding it to Mount TBR 7y
Gina Ken's world of video predated blockbuster by a decade in IL. I remember being a kid and it was quite an event to go pick out a movie to rent. Good times. 7y
vivastory @gina Going to the video store when I was growing up was a big event. It's something I'd anticipate beforehand. 7y
Gina @vivastory oh me too. Such good memories... 7y
51 likes9 stack adds12 comments
quote
vivastory
post image

"And now I'm thinking about Jar Jar Binks... "

TobeyTheScavengerMonk Ugh. Now I am too. Thanks a lot, Jeff! 7y
vivastory @TobeyTheScavengerMonk 😂 Damn it, Jeff! 7y
saresmoore 😝 *attempts to scrape memory from brain* 7y
vivastory @saresmoore A strong drink would help 😂 7y
38 likes4 comments
blurb
vivastory
post image

All of the chapter titles in this book are based on film titles.

Megabooks Definitely adding to TBR! Thanks! 7y
37 likes1 stack add1 comment
quote
vivastory
post image

"And is that The Last Temptation of Christ I see in the Spiritual Spotlight section?"

46 likes1 stack add
blurb
vivastory
post image

I love this cover. I worked at Blockbuster video for a couple of years right before DVD became widely available.

Iamlisa22 The cover is so awesome! 7y
MicheleinPhilly OMG! This cover is AMAZING! 7y
Kalalalatja It took a second look for me to realize that it was a book cover, and not a VHS tape! 7y
See All 19 Comments
Moray_Reads My brain literally can't comprehend that it isn't a video tape even though I know it's a book! 7y
Cinfhen Amazing!!! Who remembers West Coast Video??? I worked there as a summer job 1987😜 7y
saresmoore Now this really is one I should include for my kids' reference collection. They barely recognize DVDs. I just realized they've never known a world without Netflix streaming! 😱 Wow, clearly I digress—this cover is the coolest! 7y
LauraBeth I loved my job at Blockbuster! We may or may not have been laminating fake IDs with their laminating machine ?@saresmoore my kid doesn't understand what "live tv" means ? (edited) 7y
vivastory @Kalalalatja @Moray_Reads @saresmoore @MicheleinPhilly @Iamlisa22 @Cinfhen They designed this book to be the same dimensions as a vhs tape 7y
vivastory @LauraBeth haha, the multiple uses of laminating machine. Remember having to check every return & if it wasn't rewound, using the machine on the counter to rewind it. 7y
LeahBergen "Please Be Kind and Rewind". Did all your tapes have that sticker? ? 7y
vivastory @LeahBergen 😂 They did! I also remember that it would take months, 6 months if not longer, before a movie became available on vhs tape 7y
Cinfhen We would charge your account a dollar if we needed to rewind the tape @LauraBeth @vivastory 🤑🤑 7y
LauraBeth @LeahBergen it was my experience that no one rewound! @vivastory in addition to the 6 months, they cost like $80 if you lost it! @Cinfhen that's hardcore! I probably contributed to Blockbuster's demise because I felt bad charging people late fees so I just waived them ☹️ and if my manager got mad at me he'd give me a list of people who had videos out that were late and would make me call them. I just called my friends instead 😀 7y
vivastory @Cinfhen That is hardcore! @LauraBeth The blockbuster i worked at was one of four video stores in a three mile radius, we'd frequently receive other store's returns. I'd always volunteer to drive to the other locations to return the videos. I'd take at least twice as long as it should. Stopping for coffee, leisurely browsing at the library.. 😂 7y
LauraBeth @vivastory 😂👏👏 7y
Scurvygirl I love that! I worked at All Star Video for five years and this launched my love for horror films. And most movies started at $80 and no one believed you until you charged their credit card or took them to court. 7y
Scurvygirl Oh and we had adult movies with the creepiest people come in to look at them. Worst part was it was right next to the check out counter and they would take forever, searching for that special film. Thank god for the internet! 7y
vivastory @Scurvygirl vhs were really expensive. It was a huge shock when dvd prices were so much lower 7y
vivastory @Scurvygirl 😂 😂 I know exactly what you mean. I worked at Camelot music for several years & let's just say a few of the regulars didn't seem to be into music... 7y
60 likes3 stack adds19 comments