★★★✮☆ (3.5 stars)

i think this book really starts to pick up at around the halfway point, particularly in its discussions surrounding art; i found the commentary on the origins of the term a little bit less compelling, maybe even disjointed or unorganized at times. it is also repetitive - something that became especially apparent when i looked back at the bookmarks i'd made. altogether, though, it's an interesting investigation into pretentiousness (and our very pretensions surrounding it)