The Nardio Review
Is Worst Person Ever Worth Your Time?
It really depends on what mood you’re in. If you’re looking for social commentary on our me-centric culture with generous sprinkles of creative swearing then Worst Person Ever might be right up your alley. If you’re looking for something more thought provoking with characters you don’t want to strangle, it’s better to move along.
What Did You Think Without Spoiling It?
First off, let me preface this by saying that I’m a fan of Douglas Coupland ever since I read Microserfs. With that out of the way, I have to say that this isn’t Coupland’s strongest book. It’s still entertaining and I breezed through Worst Person Ever in less than a working day, but it’s a completely forgettable experience. There weren’t really any laugh out loud moments for me though and quite frankly I found all of the characters the worst person ever.
Why it Works
If nothing else, the creative swear words and ridiculous situations that Raymond Cunt finds himself in are worth a read. I wouldn’t even really call Raymond the WORST person, but he certainly has his moments – like when he’s seated next to a morbidly obese person on the plane or how he treats his newly found lackey. There are some witty bits of dialogue here and Coupland covers ridiculous aspects in our modern life like reality TV shows, drugs, the Pacific Trash vortex serving to highlight our very selfish and short-sighted nature.
No Like?
Quite honestly all of the characters kind of blend together and the people are pretty one-dimensional. There’s no redeeming qualities in any of them save maybe for Neal, and that’s stretching it. I get that Raymond is supposed to be the worst person ever, but everyone else is a close second. The jokes also kind of drag out to the point where it just isn’t funny anymore and you’re simply waiting for the plot to progress. There’s not a whole lot to the story that’s actually believable so you’ll really have to excercise your willing suspension of disbelief. That being said, it’s also an utterly forgettable read. Maybe Coupland is trying to portray the state of our entertainment today – substanceless and sophomoric drivel – with the entire book. If so then he definitely hits the mark.
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Basic Info
- Author: Douglas Coupland
- Pages: 336
- Genre: Humor/Comedy
