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3.83 AVERAGE
3.83 AVERAGE
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
After reading Generation X all I wanted to do was read MORE Coupland, his writing style and the way he is able to put down on paper those conversations you have about "life" is astounding. Microserfs is not as good as Generation X but I wonder if that is because it is a bit more serious, at almost double the length I thought at time it could have done with a stronger edit, cut it down by a quarter but by the end I appreciated the whole story and while it is dated at points at others it is just as fresh and when first published and is a credit to Coupland's ability to see where we are heading.
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
like all of coupland books, i loved it! it was fun to compare his character;s relationship to computers and take on the tech world of the mid-90's to where we are today. Coupland's examination of human-computer relationships and existentialism in a technological age were beautiful, clever, and funny.
This was fun to read while organizing a Silicon Valley study tour for students at my work. Gave me a bit of a personal connection to what they were experiencing.
This was fun to read while organizing a Silicon Valley study tour for students at my work. Gave me a bit of a personal connection to what they were experiencing.
Well, 1995 me was a huuuge fan of this book and found it very moving and wise.
2014 me, on the other hand, finds it slightly embarrassing but still charming.
2014 me, on the other hand, finds it slightly embarrassing but still charming.
The basis of the book was rather interesting and being a geek working in the Silicon Valley area, I especially felt I might be able to relate at least some to the content. Unfortunately, the book ended up being extremely fluffy and had various inconsistencies throughout, including character details and language issues that are usually taken care of by a proofreader *before* a book is published.
The book also flowed along at a decent pace for the first three-fourths of it, but then included a sudden 8-month jump in the storyline that left me hanging. After this jump in the timeline, various details were introduced without any back-up or reason for their inclusion. It seemed as if the author got to this point and then decided he was writing too much, so as a quick solution to end the book within the next 20 pages, he threw in the time jump.
Overall, if you want a fluffy book about geek life and that you can finish quickly, this is the book for you. Just don't expect any quality writing if you pick it up.
The book also flowed along at a decent pace for the first three-fourths of it, but then included a sudden 8-month jump in the storyline that left me hanging. After this jump in the timeline, various details were introduced without any back-up or reason for their inclusion. It seemed as if the author got to this point and then decided he was writing too much, so as a quick solution to end the book within the next 20 pages, he threw in the time jump.
Overall, if you want a fluffy book about geek life and that you can finish quickly, this is the book for you. Just don't expect any quality writing if you pick it up.
Microserfs was my first introduction to Douglas Coupland and in the following years has become a staple of my personal library. It is one of the few books that I read on an annual basis and even though by this point I could likely recite the story in it's entirety I am always struck with the simplistic beauty of the characters and the world they inhabit. At its most base form Microserfs is nothing more than a love story about a man named Daniel who (initially) works at Microsoft. Yes it contains tech speak about computer software and programming, but that never gets in the way of story, in fact it adds to it making the characters seem that much more real. Often when reading Microserfs I catch myself forgetting it is a work of fiction and not a memoir, Coupland has created that realistic of a world.
As mentioned above, at its root Microserfs is a love story, it details the life of Daniel--the books narrator. Coupland structured the book so that it would resemble a series of electronic diary entries so at times it can come off as very stream of conscious. Also it's worth noting that this novel was written before the invention of the blog (which came some 10 years later). This stylistic choice really shines when Daniel tries to create a subconscious for his computer, and as a reader you are presented with pages of words with no context. Initially these entries start out as just buzzwords and tech speak, but by the end of the novel they truly evolve into beautiful prose that stand on their own (some of which were taken from Microserfs and used in later novels).
It is the evolution of the characters that exist within Daniel's world that make Microserfs an emotionally moving book. Of the roughly 14 characters you have 12 who are all around the same age and experiencing that first major identity crisis of adulthood together against a backdrop of the Silicon Valley and tech boom of the 90's. Ideas of individuality (which pervade much of Coupland's early novels) and what it means to be 1.0 and and create something truly new and unique, that they can call their own, set the tone. Ultimately Microserfs succeeds not because it is an interesting look at a unique point in recent American history, but rather because Coupland creating living, breathing characters that the reader can identify with, care for and root for.
As mentioned above, at its root Microserfs is a love story, it details the life of Daniel--the books narrator. Coupland structured the book so that it would resemble a series of electronic diary entries so at times it can come off as very stream of conscious. Also it's worth noting that this novel was written before the invention of the blog (which came some 10 years later). This stylistic choice really shines when Daniel tries to create a subconscious for his computer, and as a reader you are presented with pages of words with no context. Initially these entries start out as just buzzwords and tech speak, but by the end of the novel they truly evolve into beautiful prose that stand on their own (some of which were taken from Microserfs and used in later novels).
It is the evolution of the characters that exist within Daniel's world that make Microserfs an emotionally moving book. Of the roughly 14 characters you have 12 who are all around the same age and experiencing that first major identity crisis of adulthood together against a backdrop of the Silicon Valley and tech boom of the 90's. Ideas of individuality (which pervade much of Coupland's early novels) and what it means to be 1.0 and and create something truly new and unique, that they can call their own, set the tone. Ultimately Microserfs succeeds not because it is an interesting look at a unique point in recent American history, but rather because Coupland creating living, breathing characters that the reader can identify with, care for and root for.
I hated it. The characters were two dimensional flat representations of what people who work in the technology field are. There were so many references to "geek" culture everyone seemed to be a cartoon version of a supposed real person. The whole thing felt like a gimmick.