The Art Institute recently announced that they are going to raise their price of admission this summer from $12 to $18. Most people I have discussed this with are students, and they are outraged. I can understand this. It is hard enough being a student in Chicago and paying for things like books, school, and food. It's disheartening to see the price of entertainment rise as well. 

However, I don't think raising the cost of entry is such a bad idea. It already costs $10 to go to a movie. With a movie, you don't really know what you're getting. It's kind of a wild card. No matter how many critics said it was a great movie, you still may hate it and you're gambling away your $10. With a museum like the Art Institute, you are really paying for the experience. $18 to view works of art by world renowned artists is a steal. Also, while a $10 movie may last only 90 minutes, the Art Institute can take up an entire day of browsing. Another thing museum officials are doing is lifting the special exhibit fees. Now, temporary exhibits such as the Edvard Munch exhibit that is currently going on will be of no extra charge. Currently, the Munch exhibit costs $20, plus the price of admission. I'm not great at math, but I'm pretty sure an $18 entry fee is almost half the price of $32.

The economy is obviously failing right now, and prices for entertainment venues such as movie theaters and museums are rising. The extra $6 we have to pay at the Art Institute now may go to something bigger, like acquiring new works of art. And even if you're still pissed off about the entrance fee, there's always going to be free Thursdays. So really, what's to complain about?

Two weeks ago, I read the book "Beautiful Boy" by David Sheff, a journalist who has written for Rolling Stone, Playboy, New York Magazine, and various other prestigious publications. "Beautiful Boy" was released last year but was re-released this January with a new afterword. 

For the past several years, Sheff has been coping with his now 27 year old son Nic's addiction to meth. "Beautiful Boy" chronicles Nic's life from when he was a baby until the present, highlighting the events Sheff believes led up to his addiction. Sheff reflects on the emotions that came with dealing with such a disease - He treks backwards through Nic's life, finding blame in his own divorce and previous drug use, as well as his ability as a parent. Sheff struggles to accept the disease as something that has always been beyond his control and to see Nic as an addict - someone he may never be able to trust, but will always love. What makes this book so interesting and different from other books about the subject is the unique view of a parent. Sheff makes remarks that I have heard all my life from my own mother - He would do anything for Nic, and only hopes that someday he will have a successful job, a comfortable life, and a loving partner. Most parents could probably relate to Sheff's book. Though it technically chronicles the story of an addict, it is really tells the story of a parent's love for his child.

Nic recently released his own story, "Tweak", around the same time his father's book was being re-released. I was interested enough in "Beautiful Boy" to go out and buy "Tweak" as well. It was marketed as a young adult novel, and I can definitely see why. The book is typical for the genre and the writing style is immature. In "Beautiful Boy", Sheff claims that Nic loved writers such as Bukowski and Fitzgerald, and insinuates that Nic, in his addiction, is attempting to imitate their debacuhery. This assertion provers correct in "Tweak" - Nic may be trying to be the next Bukowski in his writing. 

 Nic's book being released in the same month as his fathers got me thinking that the whole thing is kind of a marketing scam. Obviously, publishers and booksellers are wanting the customer to buy both the books as a package deal. That might explain why they are displayed next to each other at Borders. Frankly, I find it a little disheartening. Sheff's book was good. His son's was not.