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the_pepperwood_chronicles's review against another edition
3.0
Very interesting to read, but eventually goes nowhere. I was disappointed with the ending.
kdferrin's review against another edition
This book is very, very odd and quite depressing
alfyasmeen's review
4.0
Wonderful balance of deep and funny (more like dark comedy, which I love). Overall, it was very witty and clever.
This is the first book by Douglas Coupland that I picked up, and I don't know why I chose it. It's not even among his top 7 most popular books and his fans don't seem to love it; nonetheless, it was addictive. Cynical at times, but there were deep thoughts that usually linger in my brain, so I liked it. I'm giving this a five-star rating now, but I might change it after I read his other books and find them to be better - like his fans said. I am definitely getting his other books, because when you find a writer so good that you feel like you're reading a diary of a close smart friend, you buy all his books.
Oh, the story, right. It's about two employees who work at Staples. Roger, a middle-aged loser, and Bethany, the 20-something year old goth. The whole novel consists of diary entries, and letters, AND another novel inside this novel which contains another novel in which the characters are like the original novel characters. Whoa, right? Not so confusing when you read it, actually.
I wanted to quote a few things I loved from the book, but I'm too lazy. Just read it if it sounded good to you.
otl1987's review against another edition
5.0
My first Douglas Coupland. The plot is simple. Two very different people start corresponding through a notebook.
"Roger, a divorced, middle-aged "aisles associate" at Staples, condemned to restocking reams of 20-lb. bond paper for the rest of his life. And Roger's co-worker Bethany, in her early twenties and at the end of her Goth phase, who is looking at fifty more years of sorting the red pens from the blue in aisle 6."
As they write to one another, they start to reveal personal stories and experiences from their lives and come to appreciate each other and care for one another.
From my point of view, this book adresses a very common fact. That we judge "a book by its cover". That we judge a person by the way they dress or the music they listen to. This book proves that rather often, we couldn't be more wrong. A stranger can't possibly know what another person is feeling, what he, or she, is trying to hide behind that specific way of dressing or that particular behavior. After that book, I always think what others may hide, what they don't want revealed and what they might be afraid of.
Every one of us have a secret little world inside of us and we keep it from others in different ways. And who knows, maybe that's for the best. Maybe that's the only way we can go on...
"Roger, a divorced, middle-aged "aisles associate" at Staples, condemned to restocking reams of 20-lb. bond paper for the rest of his life. And Roger's co-worker Bethany, in her early twenties and at the end of her Goth phase, who is looking at fifty more years of sorting the red pens from the blue in aisle 6."
As they write to one another, they start to reveal personal stories and experiences from their lives and come to appreciate each other and care for one another.
From my point of view, this book adresses a very common fact. That we judge "a book by its cover". That we judge a person by the way they dress or the music they listen to. This book proves that rather often, we couldn't be more wrong. A stranger can't possibly know what another person is feeling, what he, or she, is trying to hide behind that specific way of dressing or that particular behavior. After that book, I always think what others may hide, what they don't want revealed and what they might be afraid of.
Every one of us have a secret little world inside of us and we keep it from others in different ways. And who knows, maybe that's for the best. Maybe that's the only way we can go on...
paulvanbuuren's review against another edition
4.0
Klein boek over kleine mensen. Volwassenen en adolescenten worstelen met opgroeien en ouder worden. Geen groot verhaal, maar een verslag van een periode. Een schrijfoefenening in een schrijfoefening in een roman.
kirstiecat's review against another edition
3.0
This is probably a 3 1/2 to be fair..and I did find it enjoyable but at the same time it's a little defeatist and not written nearly as well or as insightful into humanity as Coupland has proven himself capable of. Still, I found some of these quotes memorable:
p. 85 "Or maybe memories are like karaoke-where you realize up on the stage, with all those lyrics scrawling across the screen's bottom, and with everybody clapping at you, that you didn't know even half the lyrics to your all-time favourite song. Only afterwards, when someone is up on stage humiliating themselves amid the clapping and laughing, do you realize that what you liked most about your favourite song was precisely your ignorance of its full meaning-and you read more into it than existed in the first place. I think it's better to not know the lyrics to your life."
p. 118 "..And then in the scrapbooking aisle, I see 79 cent sticker pads with little rainbows and unicorns that say DREAMS CAN COME TRUE! and it makes me want to cry the way we feed nonsense crap like this to kids, who are going to inherit a century of ugly wars started by people who died long ago, but who were sick and damaged enough to transmit their hatred down through the centuries. Dreams don't come true. Dreams die. Dreams get compromised. Dreams end up dealing meth in a booth at the back of the Olive Garden. Dreams choke to death on bay leaves. Dreams get spleen cancer."
p. 134 "...the sensation that grief is like a werewolf that moves into your house one day and never leaves, and every time you open a door or round a corner, it's there, lying in wait."
p.202 "It's as if to you, being alive is a prank that you're playing on the world."
p. 237 "They're like a John Cheever novel. Except it's set in hell."
p. 85 "Or maybe memories are like karaoke-where you realize up on the stage, with all those lyrics scrawling across the screen's bottom, and with everybody clapping at you, that you didn't know even half the lyrics to your all-time favourite song. Only afterwards, when someone is up on stage humiliating themselves amid the clapping and laughing, do you realize that what you liked most about your favourite song was precisely your ignorance of its full meaning-and you read more into it than existed in the first place. I think it's better to not know the lyrics to your life."
p. 118 "..And then in the scrapbooking aisle, I see 79 cent sticker pads with little rainbows and unicorns that say DREAMS CAN COME TRUE! and it makes me want to cry the way we feed nonsense crap like this to kids, who are going to inherit a century of ugly wars started by people who died long ago, but who were sick and damaged enough to transmit their hatred down through the centuries. Dreams don't come true. Dreams die. Dreams get compromised. Dreams end up dealing meth in a booth at the back of the Olive Garden. Dreams choke to death on bay leaves. Dreams get spleen cancer."
p. 134 "...the sensation that grief is like a werewolf that moves into your house one day and never leaves, and every time you open a door or round a corner, it's there, lying in wait."
p.202 "It's as if to you, being alive is a prank that you're playing on the world."
p. 237 "They're like a John Cheever novel. Except it's set in hell."
drbird's review against another edition
5.0
I suspect I read this at just the right time. The characters are not necessarily different from Coupland's other works. And yet, the novel buried in this novel is different from Coupland's other work. There is an absurdity there that doesn't exist in the main storyline (a basic plot of disaffected youth, middle-aged angst, and life at Staples).
But I think the real accomplishment here is the structure of the novel. We have a novel in diary form that also includes a novel in it. The fact that the characters in the diary-novel are just as compelling as the main characters is a testament to Coupland's skill. I was compelled by this book and find myself still contemplating the way it is put together. That may not excite some people, but as a writer I can't help but obsess over the structural marvel. This whole book could have fallen apart in the hands of a less skilled writer.
But I think the real accomplishment here is the structure of the novel. We have a novel in diary form that also includes a novel in it. The fact that the characters in the diary-novel are just as compelling as the main characters is a testament to Coupland's skill. I was compelled by this book and find myself still contemplating the way it is put together. That may not excite some people, but as a writer I can't help but obsess over the structural marvel. This whole book could have fallen apart in the hands of a less skilled writer.
stenaros's review against another edition
3.0
Roger, early forties, alcoholic, works at Staples. Bethany, early twenties, goth girl, works at Staples. Bethany finds Roger's writings one day, including a short piece Roger wrote about Bethany's view of the world. They begin writing back and forth to each other and Roger shares his novel, Glove Pond with Bethany, who really loves it.
I liked the relationship between the two characters, which was the rarely depicted between-sexes-friendship. I liked how badly written Glove Pond was. I liked that the story captured the numbness of working at a major chain store. I was confused about the ending. Overall, I enjoyed the book.
I liked the relationship between the two characters, which was the rarely depicted between-sexes-friendship. I liked how badly written Glove Pond was. I liked that the story captured the numbness of working at a major chain store. I was confused about the ending. Overall, I enjoyed the book.
iguana_mama's review against another edition
funny
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
schudwitz's review against another edition
3.0
Didn’t like the ending, and Glove Pond reminded me too much of Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, which was pretty distracting. The relationship between Bethany and Roger was refreshing.
Wasn’t a waste of time, but I wouldn’t read it again.
Wasn’t a waste of time, but I wouldn’t read it again.