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November 4, 2003
Entry: "Vernon God Little"

As I've mentioned, my attention was on things other than books throughout October. So I read a review and took a look at Vernon God Little yesterday without knowing (at first) that it had just won the Man Booker Prize. Which is just as well because I'm not always crazy about prize winners. But this one is fairly remarkable. Vernon Little is a Texan teenager who's suspected of being involved in a columbine-esque massacre at his high school, and the novel consists of his first person narrative. Which sounds horrifically unappealing, but instead of dripping with sadness and angst, the book is written with a comic bent. So the result is something more poetic, well written, and entertaining than Get Your War On but with the same desperate satirical humor. It's sad and hilarious and offensive and wonderful.

The main criticism that seems to be out there against the book is that the narrative isn't entirely consistant... sometimes droning and sometimes unrealistically poetic. I've got to say, I like the poetic touch. It adds depth to an otherwise one-joke book, and a layer of reflection to the crass teenager. Which is what that horrible age is all about... the juxtoposition of adult feelings and child feelings in the same body.

Anyway, I'm only on chapter five. So we'll see.

[a few minutes later...] The author's story is as bizarre as his book.

Replies: 1 Comment

Posted by Elizabeth @ 11/16/2003 12:09 AM EST