JPod - Douglas Coupland

Finally, a Coupland novel where I felt at least somewhat connected to the characters (maybe you're supposed to feel disconnected because Gen X is supposed to be disconnected? I don't know).

Unfortunately this novel had three un-redeeming features (or whatever the opposite of redeeming feature is). Firstly, the author himself had a cameo in his own novel. I'm not sure what it was supposed to accomplish but the effect was egotistical and off-putting. The second, a common feature of Coupland novels, pages filled with semi-random words and phrases in all possible fonts, sizes and directions (I have yet to discern the point of these). Thirdly, and least annoying without the additive effect of point 2, the characters kept playing "ultimate nerd" contests with the other members of JPod, for example, to find the wrong digit in the first 100,000 digits of Pi, and then he includes the numbers - all SEVENTEEN PAGES. I can only assume that there was a wrong digit. Frankly, by that point, I didn't give a damn.