The Gum Thief

Woo. This one has been in draft version for some time now. I actually finished The Gum Thief by Douglas Coupland during CNY. I was pretty much out of action that time due to a bad cough and cold so I had more time to catch up on some reading.

The Gum Thief is about the story of Roger, a middle-aged office supplies store worker, and Bethany, his young Goth co-worker who is having some sort of identity crisis. It's told in the form of diary entries, which Roger and Bethany exchange with each other. They drift by with the mundane tasks of stocking pens and paper in the store aisles, while writing to each other and discussing their thoughts on life, death and love. (They are not romantically involved, if you were wondering.) Roger shares with Bethany about the shit that has happened in his life, which is a way of self-reflection for him. And along the way Bethany fell in love with a boy, which turned out to be a bad mistake.

I was initially excited to get into Coupland's latest work since Jpod, but I'm rather disappointed with the book. I don't really know if it was because I was sick when I was reading it, but quite often I found my eyes glazing over the characters' philosophical musings, a hallmark of Coupland's writing. This time it seemed a little trite, a little stale, and a little too self-indulgent.

The back of the book describes The Gum Thief as a 'wise, witty, and unforgettable novel'. Unfortunately, the book tries to be wise and witty, but only ends up being forgettable.

3 out of 10 nerf ninja darts.