'Girlfriend in a Coma' by Douglas Coupland is a novel that follows the story of Karen, a teenage girl who falls into a coma in 1979 and wakes up 17 years later, finding the world around her changed and dystopian. The book explores themes of loss, grief, friendship, loneliness, and the impact of tragedy on individuals. The writing style of the book has been described as a mix of teenage love story, middle-age crisis, dystopian fiction, and redemption, with a narrative that defies easy categorization and keeps readers engaged.

Characters:

The characters are flawed individuals grappling with their identities amid significant life changes, providing rich emotional depth.

Writing/Prose:

Coupland's writing style blends humor with deep cultural observations and philosophical musings.

Plot/Storyline:

The plot revolves around a group of friends dealing with the coma of one member, leading to explorations of life, maturity, and an apocalyptic event.

Setting:

Set primarily in Vancouver during the late 1970s, it evolves into a dystopian setting reflecting societal concerns.

Pacing:

The pacing varies significantly; it starts strong but becomes uneven as the narrative shifts toward an apocalyptic scenario.

On Friday, October 14, 1978, I was playing football with my high school team, the Sentinel Spartans. It was an away-game at another school, Handsworth, in North Vancouver. Early on in the game I was t...

Notes:

The book follows a group of teenagers, focusing on Karen, who falls into a drug-induced coma in 1979 for 17 years.

When Karen wakes up in 1997, she finds a world filled with advanced technology but lacks positive progress overall.

The story explores themes of narcissism in modern culture and how the characters must confront their past behaviors.

The narrative shifts dramatically when an apocalyptic illness wipes out the rest of humanity, leaving just Karen and her friends.

Readers noted that the book feels like two different stories: the first half exploring adolescence and grief, while the second half delves into a dystopian future.

Retains a touch of Coupland's signature cultural observations and humor, especially about the 70s and 90s.

Some readers enjoyed the philosophical aspects, while others found them heavy-handed and convoluted.

It's been described as a mix of coming-of-age, sci-fi, and post-apocalyptic themes.

Characters grapple with their own stagnation and face moral dilemmas after discovering their societal disconnect.

The ghost of a deceased friend, Jared, serves as a guide for the characters in the latter part of the book.

Sensitive Topics/Content Warnings

Triggers may include themes of coma, drug use, existential crises, and an apocalyptic narrative.

Has Romance?

While romance plays a role, it coexists with other themes such as loss and societal critique.

From The Publisher:

On a snowy Friday night in 1979, just hours after making love for the first time, Richard's girlfriend, high school senior Karen Ann McNeil, falls into a coma. Nine months later she gives birth to their daughter, Megan. As Karen sleeps through the next seventeen years, Richard and their circle of friends reside in an emotional purgatory, passing through a variety of careers-modeling, film special effects, medicine, demolition-before finally reuniting on a conspiracy-driven super-natural television series. But real life grows as surreal as their TV show as Richard and his friends await Karen's reawakening . . . and the subsequent apocalypse.

Ratings (4)

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Reader Stats (6):

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Girlfriend in a Coma

Douglas Coupland