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A review by marmaladereads
Several People Are Typing by Calvin Kasulke
dark
funny
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
This might be the best thing I've read in a while. Hilarious, bizarre, heartfelt, sometimes lyrical workplace satire that is perfect for our WFH post-COVID times.
The story follows Gerald, an employee of a PR firm in NYC, who inadvertently gets himself stuck in his company's Slack. But the entire book is written entirely in Slack conversations that Gerald participates in and can observe, including private conversations between other colleagues.
Because of the chat format, the book is an extremely quick read, and I was totally hooked. Don't be surprised if you finish it in one sitting. I laughed out loud repeatedly and saw a lot of similarities to my own work, where we use Slack obsessively. It does get very surreal at times and the plot is certainly bizarre and paranormal (slackbot is one of the key characters), and I actually thought the ending would be much more apocalyptic then it ended up being, but it turned out to be a very sweet and heartfelt book! The Silicon Valley and tech zingers just added to the fun. And despite me assuring my husband that he should definitely read this one because it's not a queer romance for a change... um... it's a little queer and there's a little romance 🥰
I also ended up finishing it during a long zoom meeting at work (which I ignored) during which my work besties provided a live commentary over Slack via our private channel (which I ignored a little less) which seemed extremely fitting. And I made our head of IT read it 😂
Highly recommended! :thumbsup: :dusty_stick: (ifykyk)
The story follows Gerald, an employee of a PR firm in NYC, who inadvertently gets himself stuck in his company's Slack. But the entire book is written entirely in Slack conversations that Gerald participates in and can observe, including private conversations between other colleagues.
Because of the chat format, the book is an extremely quick read, and I was totally hooked. Don't be surprised if you finish it in one sitting. I laughed out loud repeatedly and saw a lot of similarities to my own work, where we use Slack obsessively. It does get very surreal at times and the plot is certainly bizarre and paranormal (slackbot is one of the key characters), and I actually thought the ending would be much more apocalyptic then it ended up being, but it turned out to be a very sweet and heartfelt book! The Silicon Valley and tech zingers just added to the fun. And despite me assuring my husband that he should definitely read this one because it's not a queer romance for a change... um... it's a little queer and there's a little romance 🥰
I also ended up finishing it during a long zoom meeting at work (which I ignored) during which my work besties provided a live commentary over Slack via our private channel (which I ignored a little less) which seemed extremely fitting. And I made our head of IT read it 😂
Highly recommended! :thumbsup: :dusty_stick: (ifykyk)
Content Warnings
Minor: Animal death, Body horror, and Excrement