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thebobsphere 's review for:
Serotonin
by Michel Houellebecq
Michel Houellebecq likes to focus on the big topics. Platform was about the sex tourism industry, Atomised was about science, Whatever was about technology. Yet these topical subjects are heavily disguised by characters acting as degenerates.
With Serotonin, Houellebecq’s main concern is agriculture. Mainly, how it is failing; the restrictive milk quotas, the cheese industry and the problems of free range farming. Obviously this would not be a Houellebecq novel without the main protagonist pervert.
This time it’s Florent-Claude Labouste, a depressed civil servant. At this point in his life, he’s bored of his partner, is tired of squandering his life savings on his flat and is taking a drug which increases his serotonin but decreases his libido. His one and only pleasure is eating hummus.
One day Labouste is fed up and decides to escape to the Normandy countryside. He does have another mission though and that is to catch up with the important people of his past ; two lovers and a college roommate. Needless to say that Florent-Claude treated all three like garbage and sort of wants to make amends.
As this is Houellebecq, his former acquaintances have aged badly, or are in despair. Existential crises mixes with eulogies about French farming culture and Serotonin concludes in the way you’d expect, with Labouste experiencing a life change caused by his serotonin enhancing pills.
The controversial bits : there’s a human/canine gang bang, a VERY disturbing scene involving Labouste’s German next door neighbor (trigger warning here- I’d rather not talk about it), the most bizarre agricultural war and paragraphs here and there about how some women have a perfect bumholes. It’s satire but of the most uncomfortable kind.
When you read Houellebecq you know what you’re getting into and Serotonin is no exception. It juggles the crass with the meaningful, all swathed in a pessimistic outlook. I like Houellebecq so I didn’t mind this at all. In fact there were some scenes that were unusually tender for a Houellebecq novel. If you like his books, then go ahead, you’ll love this. If you’never read him, Serotonin is not the ideal place to start, (that would be Atomised)
With Serotonin, Houellebecq’s main concern is agriculture. Mainly, how it is failing; the restrictive milk quotas, the cheese industry and the problems of free range farming. Obviously this would not be a Houellebecq novel without the main protagonist pervert.
This time it’s Florent-Claude Labouste, a depressed civil servant. At this point in his life, he’s bored of his partner, is tired of squandering his life savings on his flat and is taking a drug which increases his serotonin but decreases his libido. His one and only pleasure is eating hummus.
One day Labouste is fed up and decides to escape to the Normandy countryside. He does have another mission though and that is to catch up with the important people of his past ; two lovers and a college roommate. Needless to say that Florent-Claude treated all three like garbage and sort of wants to make amends.
As this is Houellebecq, his former acquaintances have aged badly, or are in despair. Existential crises mixes with eulogies about French farming culture and Serotonin concludes in the way you’d expect, with Labouste experiencing a life change caused by his serotonin enhancing pills.
The controversial bits : there’s a human/canine gang bang, a VERY disturbing scene involving Labouste’s German next door neighbor (trigger warning here- I’d rather not talk about it), the most bizarre agricultural war and paragraphs here and there about how some women have a perfect bumholes. It’s satire but of the most uncomfortable kind.
When you read Houellebecq you know what you’re getting into and Serotonin is no exception. It juggles the crass with the meaningful, all swathed in a pessimistic outlook. I like Houellebecq so I didn’t mind this at all. In fact there were some scenes that were unusually tender for a Houellebecq novel. If you like his books, then go ahead, you’ll love this. If you’never read him, Serotonin is not the ideal place to start, (that would be Atomised)