novelesque_life's review against another edition
3.0
3.5 STARS
"Members of the Drummond family descend upon Florida to watch the launch into space of their beloved daughter and sister, Sarah, but their trip is turned upside down by a series of mishaps, coincidences, and bizarre events--including kidnapping, gunplay, and black-market negotiations. By the author of Miss Wyoming." (From Amazon)
A way better book than Corrections (Jonathan Franzen) about dysfunctional families.
"Members of the Drummond family descend upon Florida to watch the launch into space of their beloved daughter and sister, Sarah, but their trip is turned upside down by a series of mishaps, coincidences, and bizarre events--including kidnapping, gunplay, and black-market negotiations. By the author of Miss Wyoming." (From Amazon)
A way better book than Corrections (Jonathan Franzen) about dysfunctional families.
lucasgarner's review against another edition
2.0
I tried giving Coupland a second chance, but was disappointed once again. I love the cynical comedic nature of his writing, but all of his plots seem to go nowhere, or have little purpose. I love characters that are terrible people, but these characters were awful and boring, so what's the point? This will probably be my final attempt at enjoying this author's books.
maiad9's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
3.25
curiousnoel's review against another edition
4.0
This book was a romp. :) Wacky, but still intelligent, and with its genuine moments too. Huge variety of characters who were all well developed with awesome dialogue. Definitely going to read more Coupland.
katerr's review
4.0
I really liked this one- it felt like the first Coupland book with a sort of normal storyline. I love the odd ones but this just seemed like a bit of a departure, which was interesting.
eniu's review against another edition
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
0.5
I had to force myself to finish this book. It was an unbearable read. The writing style of a child, tryhard attempts to add some depth to the characters, no pace for the plot, nonsensical actions by the characters, no solid character attributes, and i could go on. A waste of time. Tries to be meaningful, but falls flat. In short, the book can be summarised by Tolstoy's opening line in Anna Karenina: "Happy families are all alike; every unhappy family is unhappy in its own way". You're welcome, I saved you some time.
thisbookishcat's review against another edition
Let me start off by stating that I did not finish this book; I got abut 40% into it and finally gave up.
The whole thing is written in such an unrealistic, almost dramatic and cartoon-like way that I just couldn't get in to what I'm certain was meant to be very serious and heartfelt. I do not recommend this to anyone.
The whole thing is written in such an unrealistic, almost dramatic and cartoon-like way that I just couldn't get in to what I'm certain was meant to be very serious and heartfelt. I do not recommend this to anyone.
murph_the_serf's review against another edition
2.0
I normally enjoy Coupland's irreverence but this book just took it a few notches too far into disbelief. It was absurdity for absurdity's sake and I can't get into that at all. His language choice is always fun but it isn't enough to save this one - a definite pass.
vivelaviv's review against another edition
4.0
Hilarious and a little bit sick and twisted (just the way I like it). Kind of reminded me of Carl Hiassen.