A Thought About Coupland

I'm currently reading Douglas Coupland's Microserfs, one of those books I would have read years ago if the title hadn't fallen victim to my antiquated Post-it Note reading list system. I don't know about anybody else, but my Post-its have a way of disappearing from my desk and reappearing weeks later in the strangest places -- behind shelves, in between random book pages, under shoes, in the refrigerator. Of course, when I find one, it's a bit like discovering an Easter egg.

That gives me a great idea for a potential egg hunt when I become a dad some day. I can already hear the kids talking about it, the day after the big hunt, in elementary school...

Teacher: So, Milo, how many eggs did you find?
Milo: Five and they all had chocolate candy in them!
Class: Mmm!
Teacher: Very good, Milo. How about you, Hayden?
Hayden: Three and each one had five dollars in it!
Class: Oooh!
Teacher: And how about you, Jebediah¹?
Jebediah: (dejectedly) One.

(The whole class bursts into giggles and the teacher dowses them with a stern look.)

Teacher: Speak up, please. And what did it have inside?
Jebediah: This. (produces a Post-it, which the teacher takes)
Teacher: Vanity Fair by W.M. Thackeray? You have a very strange father, Jebediah. Oops, I mean, did I say that out loud?

Okay, maybe it isn't such a great idea, just a good Plan B.

When I read Coupland, I can feel my frame of mind changing, as though my brain is restructuring itself in order to grasp the concepts on the page. I can almost physically feel the individual gray cells rearranging themselves so they can "get" it. It's a bizarre sensation.

I believe every writer has this power, the ability to alter our perspectives, allow us (or force us, depending on our willingness) to see the world through different eyes, or lead us to explore ideas we would have never contemplated otherwise.

Maybe that isn't exactly true. Maybe every writer potentially has this power, but most are unable to use it effectively. Most only reinforce our beliefss or lead us to the same familiar places in our brains. There's nothing wrong with that, but it seems most unusual (and refreshing) to come across somebody who veers from the established trail and does some mental trailblazing.

So far, I'm enjoying the path Coupland is cutting. The book is written in the form of a journal, almost in a blog-like fashion, which gives him an incredible amount of storytelling freedom. The tone of his main character reminds me of one or two bloggers I read. At times, I forget he wrote this book nearly thirteen years ago.

With any luck, I'll finish reading it tonight. I'm eager to see how the story ends and to see what surprises the final pages have in store.

If I really thought about it, I would say Coupland belongs to a small group of writers that makes me think, "Gosh, I wish I could write like that."

¹ I believe any hypothetical child of mine should have an embarrassingly anachronistic name. It builds character.