Cleverly thought-out novel that descends into zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz territory (Girlfriend in a Coma - Douglas Coupland)

Member Name: sparkymarky1973

Product:	Girlfriend in a Coma - Douglas Coupland
Date:	11/06/09 (46 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Takes it's name from a Smiths' song!

Disadvantages: Tries to convey a message that gets lost in translation...

Girlfriend In A Coma is one of those books that I had always wanted to read but never got round to then someone requested a swap on Readitswapit and this was one of the novels on offer. Not fancying anything else, I finally succumbed and decided to give it a go and what an experience I let myself in for!

Reading on here, most of the reviews avaiolable are positive ones but my own thoughts were a little more hit 'n' miss. Whilst I didn't hate the book, there were sections of the early novel that I really enjoyed, the end chapters left me feeling very cold and more than just a tad confused exactly what point the author was trying to get across.

The story begins at the end of all civilisation; we are greeted by an apocalytptic vision of our own world as seen through the eyes of a young teenage ghost. He explains a little about his life before he died back in 1978 and goes on to tell the reader that what follows will be seen through the eyes of some of his oldest friends. The story then begins proper in the late seventies where 17 year old Karen is experiencing grim visions of a depressing and grim future whilst her colllective friends are busy partying and having fun. When she passes out at a party and enters a comatose state from which she will not awaken for several years, her friends have to pick up the pieces and continue their lives without her; something they find increasingly more difficult to do as each of their lives bears the scars of Karen's passing. Richard, the main narrator, finds it increasingly difficult to move on especially with the revelation that Karen is pregnant and he the father of their child. Many years later when Karen awakes, she has to deal with both the fact that decades have passed whilst for her, the seventies were only yesterday, and that she is now a mum with a grown-up daughter. Then others around her also begin to pass out into comas from which they will not awake and only she and her friends are spared. But why and what is the significance of all that has happened? Only by entering the pages of this bizarre, complex and totally off-the-wall novel will you ever find out.....

For me, this is an interesting book that appeals on many levels. The whole coma idea has been done before and better by horror author, Stephen King in his novel The Dead Zone and the end-of-the-world concept is also one that has been explored by many other successful writers in the past so the descision to combine these two plot devices is a brave one! What this book attempts to do though, and in my opinion fails, is carry a deeper, under-lying message about the frailty of human existance and the power of close friendship and relationships. In fact I found the whole meta-physical, meta-spiritual ending overly confusing, uncredible and a little unbelievable and any message the book was trying to convey rapidly became lost as I began losing not just interest but also the will to live. What had been a relatively pleasing read until then, descended for me into mindless drivel that nearly sent me into a coma- and perhaps this is Coupland's desired effect?!?

Like I say, the whole concept and idea begins promisingly, it is just a shgame that the author lost me in the final crescendo! Perhaps I am not intellecutual enough to fully grasp what Coupland is trying to explain or maybe I am just more intellectual than those who heap praise upon praise upon this book because I possess the ability to cut through the crap and, to quote Roy Walker "say what I see". And what I see is an attempt to make more of an idea than is actually needed- the proverbial creation of a mountain constructed from the remnants of a mole-hill!

Books such as this and The Naked Lunch have long escaped my understanding of how something can become a cult classic just for spouting nonsensical nonsense! This could have been such a fine novel but instead it descends into poppycock and jabberwocky! Maybe someone reading this can explain what it is I have missed about this novel but what I do know is that the best thing about it is the title which is taken from a Smiths' song by the same name; a song that has always had some relevance to me since I first heard Morrissey's dulcid tones blasting it out over the radio back when I was a humble sprog and still listened to the Sunday charts....

Unless you have a PHD, a Masters or illusions of grandeur then you are probably best to avoid this bizarre, bizarre attempt at a novel. Certainly there are better tomes than this out there that still carry a serious message. And with that I leave you with one single thought.....

Catch 22 anyone?

Summary: Karen has visions of the future then falls into a coma for several decades....