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3.43 AVERAGE
3.43 AVERAGE
Douglas Coupland's The Gum Thief is a complex web of narratives, letters, confessions, and journal entries that sits comfortably within a postmodern sensibility that challenges conventional notions of what a text can (and should) be. At the end of The Gum Thief, the book's protagonist, Roger, receives a scathing critique of the novel itself, which disrupts established notions of authorship. In this critique, his instructor writes, "Locationwise, your book takes place in your own day-to-day world, and that's wrong...Staples? I can go there any time and experience it myself. I don't need or want art that tells me about my daily life. I want art that tells me about somebody--anybody--else but me" (273-274). What this instructor misses is a question that Coupland grapples with in many of his books: as an aesthetic form, what does the novel have left to offer a reader? Furthermore, and from a structural perspective, what can the novel offer or contribute that it hasn't already? Considering The Gum Thief from a formalist perspective explains why Coupland offers his reader a little bit of everything from the novel's stylistic history. Epistolary blends with conventional narration which blends with unreliable narration (which, at times, appears quite reliable) which blends with journal entries and so on. Coupland's formal playfulness reflects postmodernism's preoccupation with lost authority, and skepticism toward authority quickly emerges as a dominant theme throughout the novel itself.
I have returned to The Gum Thief four or five times since reading it in graduate school. I do so in moments of intense vulnerability because Coupland's narrative playfulness and structural instability produce, ironically enough, relief. The novel's vulnerability coupled with my own, double-negatives my anxiety, creating an odd sort of tranquility.
I have returned to The Gum Thief four or five times since reading it in graduate school. I do so in moments of intense vulnerability because Coupland's narrative playfulness and structural instability produce, ironically enough, relief. The novel's vulnerability coupled with my own, double-negatives my anxiety, creating an odd sort of tranquility.
dark
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I haven't read any of his books before and thought this was a really cleverly written story. I thoroughly enjoyed it and will definitely have to read some more of his books.
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
A strange but compelling and humorous story. It was written in an interesting style and peppered with another story throughout.
This book has a novel inside a novel and then... there's a novel inside the novel that is inside the novel!
I don't really know if that's a good thing. I was not very interested in the third level down. I cared about the characters in the main novel. Maybe it was deliberate that I wouldn't care so much the further levels down.
The main novel characters know each other from the Staples they work at. That was definitely fun.
And I'm happy to report that this book was in my big pile of books to read and now I can put it in one of the nearby little free libraries.
I don't really know if that's a good thing. I was not very interested in the third level down. I cared about the characters in the main novel. Maybe it was deliberate that I wouldn't care so much the further levels down.
The main novel characters know each other from the Staples they work at. That was definitely fun.
And I'm happy to report that this book was in my big pile of books to read and now I can put it in one of the nearby little free libraries.
I had a serious love/hate relationship with this book. Most of the time I enjoyed the "book within a book" Glove Pond, more than the actual book. I think what it really comes down to is I can't tell if I love or despise Douglas Coupland's writing, since this is the first book I have actually read of his. It is so overly witty and every character has far too much energy to constantly spout off their witticisms. I found it tiresome most of the time and yet....I did finish it! So there must be something there.
Maybe someone else can better explain to me how I feel because I can't seem to understand.
Maybe someone else can better explain to me how I feel because I can't seem to understand.
This is a stupid book and I didn't enjoy reading it. It took me months to finish, just because the idea of reading this book seemed pointless and boring. I hated the book and probably wouldn't have read it or even picked it up if it wasn't a gift.
Very interesting to read, but eventually goes nowhere. I was disappointed with the ending.
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.