‚At the start of Douglas Coupland’s new novel, 17-year-old Karen loses her virginity to boyfriend Richard on a ski slope in Vancouver. An hour later she collapses at a party and falls into a vegetative coma…

This book is out of my permanent collection, but i still want it to see the world, that's why i make a ring:


- juicy-comrade (Canada)
- andrea1982 (Canada)
- snowy652 (Canada)
- mysteryfan03 (USA)
- alanfoxboro (USA)
- hunnyb (Australia)<--- It' there!
- EnchantedWoods (Australia)
- hshah (India)
- mimi4711 (Germany)
- hank-chinaski (Germany)
- Sunneschii (Switzerland)
- Red-Amaryllis (Austria)


back to me :Diamondlucy

RELEASE NOTES:

finally i started the bookring! Enjoy!

Just got it in the mail - thank you. I'll try to read it quickly.

I absolutely loved this book right up until Part Three (of three) when it got pointlessly preachy and unfocused. The first two parts more than make up for it though. It's the story of lives wasted in a believable way, highlighted by unbelievable events.

I just came home from the post office. The book is now on it's way to andrea1982.

Recieved in the mail today. I can't wait to read this one, thanks!

I loved this book! I really enjoy Coupland's writing style, and descriptions. I think the overall message to this book is valid, and it is shown from an interesting perspective. All of the un-believable events kept me from putting this book down for long. I also enjoyed the fact that I've been to many of the places mentioned in the book, having lived in Vancouver for a while. It was neat to think, "hey, I know where that is! I know what that looks like!"

I'll be mailing it off to snowy652 by the end of the week. Thanks for sharing this one, DiamondLucy!

picked this up at the post office today -- I have two and a half to read before it and then I will be reading and passing on to the next person in line -- Thanks for letting me be part of this ring.

I am not sure as to what to say about this book. Part of me liked it and part of me didn't. I like the fact that it took place in BC as I have recently moved here and I could picture some of the places in my head as I was reading. Some of was too "out there" for my tastes. The message of how people can waste their lives was good -- not sure if I will be reading any more books by this author as it really wasen't my thing -- However, I am grateful for being able to read it and trying something new.

Sending off to "mysteryfan03 " today.

I just got this in the mail today! Thanks! And thanks for the bookmark! One of them said "This book belongs to Cindy" and that's my name, so I am taking that one! It is very nice and handstamped! Thanks

This was a very good read. However, I did not understand the ending and Jared at all! I would have liked it better if the characters had matured more "authentically" and the ending were of her waking up in that world. The way this ended was just plain boring and made no sense to me. Thanks for sharing!

This book arrived today in the mail. Thanks to Diamondlucy for the bookring and to mysteryfan03 for sending it on to me. I will read it and post a review ASAP.

Update:
I still have one bookring to read ahead of this one, and as a 1 month time limit has been established for this ring, I am going to send it along to hunnyb in Australia. Thanks for including me.

Received book today - thank you! I have really enjoyed others of Coupland's offerings, e.g. "Miss Wyoming" and "All Families are Psychotic" so am looking forward to reading this one.

An interesting novel - more philosophical/ science fiction-y than some of Coupland's others that I've read so far. Makes you see the world in a new light... that humans are a pretty screwed up race and that we should do something about it! :) Thanks for sharing this, Diamondlucy. I'll send it onto EnchantedWoods.

Update - EnchantedWoods has not replied to PMs so will PM hshah for address.

Received the book today! Its on my wishlist, am so excited to read!

Well a pretty nice book that reflects human behavior and gives us a chance to analyse our own behavior.

I have had it on my wishlist. thanks very much
Diamondlucy for sharing.

Am sending the book today to mimi4711. Have the address. Enjoy!

I just found the book (in a very interesting looking envelope from India!!!) on a pile of mail I got while being on holiday for a week (mostly bills, though, on that pile...). I hope it won't take me too long to read.

thanks for the ring! i really enjoyed reading this one, up until the collapse of the world! i wanted to give it to all of my friends as birthday presents when i was half through, but i'm happy that i didn't get any copies. Half through i thought that nothing can go wrong with the book, convincing characters, nice storyline, wonderful narrative style. BUT:
i thought the ending of the book was pure crap: extremely moralizing, stupid and unnecessary; as if someone put this excellent narrator in a coma and finished his book for him. this should better be one of the books that you never finish... (or maybe i just haven't seen the light?!!)

i've asked for the next address and will send it when i have it!

Arrived safely while I was in Hamburg for the weekend. I've got no less than seven of his books on my Mt.TBR, but haven't read any of them yet, so this is gonna be my first Coupland. Can't wait to start off, but have to finish another ring first.

A good ending can't save a bad book, but a poor finish can definitely spoil an otherwise good one. If proof be needed, take Coupland's Girlfriend in a Coma. Although I had some serious objections right from the beginning (what can you expect from a book that's introduced by a ghost?), I soon found it improving with each page I turned over and it evolved to be a clever, well-written description of growing up in a post-modern society, with its prolongued phase of adolescence, juggling carreers and spouses, resulting in disrupt, patchwork life courses and all that sort of thing; and midway through, I thought I might be giving it 8 or even 9 points out of 10. Then came this queer end-of-the-world act with only our circle of friends being the chosen few to survive. I found that to be rather strange, but still I swallowed it allright. What I did not buy, however, was all this business about Jared (who's more of an angel than a ghost), popping up like a freaked out narrow gauge Jesus, doing miracles and engaging in supposedly philosophical dialogues with everyone, telling them their life task had been to strive for excellence (which they no doubt had fucked up), but offering them redemption and granting them a second chance. Good grief! Is this literature or is it a promo handout for the Coupland Church of the True Believers?

(Speaking of second chances, I think it's fair to admit Coupland another one with me, but he better not miss it... ;-))

I asked Karen, who was alo trying to gauge the impact of what we'd just done together in the woods, if she was happy. This is never, as I have since learned, a good question to ask of anyone.

Sunneschii asks to be skipped, now off to red-amaryllis by snailmail (Aug.8).

The book arrived today, thank you hank-chinaski and all the other participants in this ring. Looking forward to reading it...