web counter
 

Cannonball Read III: Player One: What Is to Become of Us by Douglas Coupland

By Alli | Posted Under Book Reviews | Comments (9)

playerone.jpg

Player One is a novel by Douglas Coupland, it was written for a CBC lecture series and was broadcast on the radio as well as through podcasts. It is split up into 5 one-hour segments. We follow four main characters and a couple side characters through a global crisis as it unfolds.

My favorite book is The Stand and in some ways this book reminded me of that one, but overall it was a bit disappointing. Coupland is quite a famous Canadian author, and this is the first book of his that I have read. I think that perhaps trying to fit it into the time frame of the lecture series may have been responsible for the shortcomings that I perceived.

I think that Coupland set a good scene, created interesting characters to fill it in. One of the main characters suffers from a plethora of medical conditions on the autism/OCD spectrum, which was quite interesting. I think that had Coupland had more time to flesh out the characters and plot, the book would have been much stronger.

The ending felt tacked on and too simplistic for the crisis that the book centers around. I would rather not say what that crisis is for fear of giving away too much of the plot. But I will just say that something like that would not have a happy ending.


For more of Alli’s reviews, check out her blog, Alli’s Cannonball Read.

This review is part of Cannonball Read III. For more information, click here.









Each Time You Like, Share, Tweet or Stumble a Pajiba Post, An Angel Does the Paul Rudd Dance

← Rango Review: Children Strictly Optional | "Winning" Is No Longer Funny, But Last Night's "SNL" Had Its Moments →









Comments

I recommend reading Hey Nostradamus or JPod.

Posted by: tallulahc at March 6, 2011 10:48 AM

I've read a few of Coupland's books (Shampoo Planet is my favourite), although nothing tremendously recent, and I'm sure Girlfriend in a Coma is also an end-of-the-world scenario. I like his style of writing and his ideas but I never really warm to his characters - they're always a bit too self-conscious. I have Hey Nostradamus! on the bookshelf and I know I've read it but I remember absolutely nothing about it.

Posted by: lingli at March 6, 2011 4:55 PM

GenerationX anyone? Dang you kids make me feel old.

Posted by: cinekat at March 7, 2011 7:36 AM

Good on him but Copeland seems to be the buzz word for those who feign elitism. All that snotty CBC talk, Can-Lit as self perspective art. Every seaside Canuck with beard and guitar seems to toss his name around. Per-lease give me, and this guy, a break.

Posted by: JaneSpotting at March 7, 2011 9:10 AM

I've read almost all of Douglas Coupland's books and I think they're marvelous, though I do agree that sometimes his endings feel hurried or simplistic. Shampoo Planet is my favorite of his fiction novels and I enjoyed Generation A, one of his newer ones, a lot also.

Posted by: pxilated at March 7, 2011 9:19 AM

Jane, Coupland hasn't been a buzzword for almost 20 years. Do these same seaside Canucks go on about Alice in Chains and the special effects in Terminator 2?

Alli, I opened this one and read a few pages but couldn't get into it. Try reading Microserfs, Shampoo Planet or Generation X, though you might be too young to identify with that last one. (I'm just guessing at this, apologies if you're 45 and jaded.)

Posted by: Brenton at March 7, 2011 12:13 PM

I will have to check out some of his other books. I do like to read Canadian authors, even if they are mainstream. I am in my 30s, just a bit shy of Gen X so maybe I can relate to that one.

Posted by: Alli at March 7, 2011 3:17 PM

Isn't Generation X the one that's going to stick to him forever? Although I am the only one in the world, I personally always liked Life After God. Plus, Polaroids from the Dead had it's moments, and Microserfs (although I haven't read it since it was relevant, and I'm afraid to in a way). The irritating once you notice it thing about Coupland is that he fills in the themes through the dialogue, which means his characters all end up making fascinating observations while sounding way more interesting than your friends, however they all end up sounding the same across every book, no matter how disparate they are supposed to be.

Posted by: negative 1 at March 7, 2011 10:16 PM

Isn't Generation X the one that's going to stick to him forever? Although I am the only one in the world, I personally always liked Life After God. Plus, Polaroids from the Dead had it's moments, and Microserfs (although I haven't read it since it was relevant, and I'm afraid to in a way). The irritating once you notice it thing about Coupland is that he fills in the themes through the dialogue, which means his characters all end up making fascinating observations while sounding way more interesting than your friends, however they all end up sounding the same across every book, no matter how disparate they are supposed to be.

Posted by: negative 1 at March 7, 2011 10:27 PM