Vernon God Little

DNF at 7%

I gotta say, I don't usually dnf books. Most of the time, no matter how much I dislike most of it, I'll at least read the end or something because by the time I realize I don't like it, I'll already be a good way through it. However, this was so bad from the very first sentence, I don't even care how it ends. The writing is borderline offensive, the mc has a terrible attitude, and over all, it's depressing and annoying from the very beginning. I was thinking I could at least get through a little more but after about 3 chapters I'm done. I can't take anymore of this.

Initially it might be a little hard to get comfortable with the style of writing. Once I was a few pages in though I was pretty hooked. This is a funny, moving and uncomfortable read at times. It never shys away from anything. It's the thoughts of a teenager laid bare to greatest extent possible.

Did not finish. Booker, how you let me down with this one. The characters were vile, disgusting creatures and while the story focused on a very serious topic, I felt absolutely nothing. Poor show.

Vernon God Little starts out a little weird when you have not been reading a whole lot of post-modern reading lately: Act I: Shit Happened. A little odd. But it sets the tone. The tone is always twofold. It's dark/sunny, texan/british (humorwise), sad/funny, bizarre/beautiful. This tone takes a few twists and turns which lead to a deeper character.

It is a wonderful dark comedy style that DBC Pierre is eloquent in. A beautiful mixture between a critique of a society and a coming-of-age story of a boy who is suspected of a massacre that he was not a accomplice in.

The reasoning why it gets a 3 out of 5 goes as follows. The book is a good read, a gripping story, well-written but it is not brilliant. Also I found the ending a bit too much of a feel-good-family film. I was prepared to see Vernon God Little die and was a bit disappointed, in a weird way, that he did not.

Anyway, another one of my Mann Booker List that I have read. Yes! 30-something more to go.

I've tried to read this two times.. I think mainly because I like the title.