This one got thrown at the wall in a short space of time.

My mind was prepared to love it, but then I was confronted with the ugliest writing about the ugliest antihero. He was the modern hip hop version of the snivelling little creep in Catcher in the Rye. I've always wanted to go back in time and murder that character, but I can't because he's imaginary.

Some other review of this says - quote - as the novel unfolds, Pierre's parodic version of American culture never crosses the line into caricature - unquote. And I say - uh, WHAT??? It starts off with painful cliché caricatures and escalates from there. The subtitle of this book should be "Caricatures R Us". The author is DBC Pierre, and the DBC might as well stand for Dreadfully Boring Caricatures.

So after that, I watched "Elephant". It may not be such a masterpiece itself, but it's better than this bad book.

****

Short list of things about school shootings:

Bowling for Columbine

Elephant

We Really Must Talk About Kevin, I Insist, No Really, Shut Up, Listen to Me

Vernon God Little If You Really Must

Columbine, a great book about the real thing, see my long review elsewhere.

The topic is actually very nice and it also arouses curiosity about what will happen to Vernon's fate. However, I just couldn't get used to the author's style at all.

Perhaps it could be because my expectations were too high from a book that has been so highly awarded (Man Booker, Whitbread, James Joyce). The writing of such a serious topic in a humorous way and the use of a very swear-word-laden language really spoilt my reading pleasure.

Still, it is a text that has its own issues. Those who like black humor can give it a try.

Finished reading this novel last week, but needed more time to start writing this review. Still amazed. Here we are.

If you are not familiar with American slang, you will feel a little annoyed by the excessive use of American teenagers' lingo. Obviously, this is a novel that could be included in the Guinness Book of Records for having the most f-words (in all its forms). I estimated that there would be at least around 800 f-words in this novel (using sampling techniques, of course). But, amazingly, it seemed that Mr. Dirty But Clean Pierre could read his readers' minds. Unexpectedly, the f-word vanished in the last one-third of the novel (so I was wrong, as I assumed the usage of the f-word in this novel was homogeneous). I won't tell you why this drastic change happened. You should read it yourself. It's just amazing how a little, seemingly unimportant thing like using or not using the f-word can have an impact on the interpretation (at least for me) of the whole story.

Apart from the difficulties with the vocab/lingo, the story is very interesting. Mr. Finlay (the real name of DBC Pierre) is surely a good storyteller. He can engage me in his novel. Actually, I couldn't help reading the last one-third of this novel for about five hours non-stop, even though I had a lot of work to do the next day.

To make it short (if you want a more detailed review, just visit Wiki), this novel is about a 15 (turned 16) years old boy, Vernon Gregory Little, who suffered from his best friend's mass-murdering because of his bowel movement (can you imagine that?). Starting with the interrogation and ending with the revelation of what really happened, climaxing in the execution process, the novel is just an effortless prose by Mr. Pierre, presenting himself as a nasty, sarcastic, angst-ridden, yet sympathetic teenage boy. The phrases, which seem like the product of unthoughtful thought, are just mesmerizing and make you think hard. "If things don't happen unless you see them happening, do they still happen if you think they're gonna - but don't tell nobody...?" Does this sentence really have meaning? Or is it just the clumsy thought of a depressed teenager?

Unanimously, this novel is categorized as a dark comedy. You know I kind of hate dark stories while I like comedies. But now, I think I just love the combination of the two. While sometimes I think Mr. Pierre's imagination went a bit wild (isn't it absurd that the people of America chose the one to be executed through SMS voting? Oh my, I just can't stand it! Right, it is a satirical, dark, comic novel. But I'm really disturbed by this American Idol parody!), the rest of his imagination, his invention in the use of English words, his playing with the G in the middle name of Vernon Little (Vernon Go-to-hell Little, Vernon Godzilla Little, Vernon Gay Little, Vernon Gonzalez Little, etc) shows his genius.

If I have to make a comparison, I can compare this novel to 'Wonderboys' by Michael Chabon. Both stories are messy, while Chabon's can be considered a civilized novel. This novel can also be compared to Arundhati Roy's "The God of Small Things" (not because both have the word 'God' in their titles), for its inventive, flexible, experimental use of English words/phrases, while Roy's can be considered a contemplative one and Pierre's as a not so serious one.

Finally, my homage to the jury of the Man Booker Prize 2003. You certainly know how to pick the winner. (FYI, four out of five jurors voted for this novel to be the year's winner).

If I ever have the opportunity to start my own barbecue restaurant, I will undoubtedly steal the name Bar-B-Chew Barn from this book.

Vernon Little is facing a plethora of problems. His best friend has just committed a school shooting, killing 16 of their fellow students, and the police suspect Vernon may have had some involvement. Meanwhile, his mother is more preoccupied with faking the purchase of a new refrigerator to impress her so-called friends than with Vernon's issues. Adding to his woes, a sleazy producer/reporter is trying to turn Vernon into his ticket to stardom by implicating him in the killings. Vernon, for his part, is too lost in his own adolescent fantasies and bewildered by the adults around him to convince anyone of his innocence.

The book is well-written and darkly funny, with a lot of good satire about small-town Americans and the media. However, I didn't enjoy it much. It wasn't because of the dark subject matter, but rather because everyone in it is just so mind-numbingly stupid that it was difficult for me to take. And it's not just stupidity; there's also a casual level of indifference and cruelty that's tough to stomach. At times, I found it hard to root for Vernon because he's so dumb.

The last act of the book finally shows Vernon growing up and becoming a little smarter, but I almost gave up on it halfway through. I can handle stupidity. (I even like Will Farrell movies.) But when there isn't a single character with 50 IQ points to point out the stupidity, it wears me down.

Vernon God Little by DBC Pierre is truly a divine comedy and a chef d'oeuvre of grandiose proportions.

It is one of the finest books I have ever had the pleasure of reading. The style is exquisitely crafted, being both hilarious and modern, light yet creative.

To quote from the book, "Chinga". I loved it so much that I decided earlier to write Vernon God Little on a T-shirt. Since our firm can do that, it might just happen soon.

I also thought about the follow-up. Most guys probably won't have a clue what Vernon God Little is. After all, I had no idea a few months ago. But there will be one in ten thousand who will say something appreciative and that person will be my friend for life.

By the way, if you read this and like God Little, we are buddies. There are splendid scenes in this marvel of a book.

I'm thinking of three examples. One is the paradigm shift. You enter a room and see a strange man with a finger up your granny's butt. What do you think? You might say, "I'll kill the son of a bitch." But then you learn that the man knew about a deadly worm that climbed up inside granny and would have killed her. So he controlled his disgust to save her. What do you think now? He's a hero! This is a paradigm shift, expressed in different words but with a similar idea.

Then there is the appearance of the lawyer Abdini. He had white shoes. I would be convicted by a jury just because of his shoes alone. He comes from a region that has centuries of fast talking and deal making. No matter how we avoid saying it today, the jury would mistrust this fella. He looks like the fucking Cuban ambassador with his white suit and shoes.

Finally, they talk about school and... You heard about that guy - did he mention categorical imperative? I forgot - Manual Cunt. What Manual Cunt? I only know about cars with automatic shift.

Finally, after saying that this is extraordinary writing and that I discovered, for better or worse, that this impudent, foul language is right up my alley, I must say that after about sixty percent, the plot veered in a direction that I didn't care much for. I wish the hero had a different experience in Mexico and after that. I won't say more, but this storyline would look different in my hands, with a considerably worse outcome in literary terms but with increased personal satisfaction for me. I envisage a version where the fat women are absent, even the mother, and Taylor is more like a Hollywood lead, like Nicole Kidman or Liv Taylor. Just to prove how shallow I am.

All in all, this masterpiece offered so much exquisite pleasure that it doesn't matter that the plot takes turns I dislike. It is still magnificent, grand, and mesmerizing.

In this book, the teenager, who is threatened with the death penalty due to false accusations, becomes an example of the decline of society's collective consciousness, blinded by journalistic-glamorous stories, television viewing, and a thirst for punishment.

It presents a powerful critique of how society can be misled and influenced by the media and its obsession with sensationalism and punishment. The author skillfully weaves a narrative that forces the reader to question their own beliefs and values.

I recommend this book to all those who have read Vonnegut and Heller. It offers a similar thought-provoking exploration of the human condition and the flaws within our society.

It is a must-read for anyone interested in literature that challenges the status quo and makes us think about the world we live in.

Teenage Texan Vernon Little tells his story in a unique style that I would describe as "trailer park rococo." His language is filled with "fucken" and incorrect grammar, like using "lay" instead of "lie." However, it is also rich and maximalist. He describes clouds as "puffy tumors" and brown moths as "felty splinters." An old man's eyes are said to "crinkle like barbed wire snagged with horsehair." Butts and panties, especially those of girls, are Vernon's particular fixation, and he notices them all. For example, when Goosens walks to the witness stand, Vernon remarks that "His cheeks swish like silk bulging with cream." It's a vivid and almost cartoonish style, similar to Philip Guston's paintings.

Vernon's best friend Jesus has just gone on a shooting spree at their high school, and Vernon also comes under suspicion. He flees to Mexico and uses his last dollars to call the attractive Taylor Figueroa. Normally, Taylor wouldn't give Vernon a second thought, but now that he is associated with the murder, he becomes interesting to her.
In a rather graphic and passionate passage, Vernon describes his encounter with Taylor.

She tries to close her legs, wriggles hard, but she's lost. Vernon is on fire and becomes even more committed as she shows her shyness and the musky dampness. He pulls aside her weeping panty and discovers a delta writhing with meats, glistening with sweat that carries spicy coded silts from her ass, with the scents of olives, cinnamon dust, and chili blood. She gives up, defeated, having no secrets left in the animal world. Her knees bend up, and she takes in his tongue, finger, and face. She cries and bucks, and the horny ridges, ruffles, and grits suck him in, leading him to the stinking wet truth behind panties, money, justice, and slime, burning trails through his brain like acid through butter.

This intense and detailed description adds another layer to the complex and somewhat disturbing story of Vernon Little.

The Booker Prize could only have been won in 2003. The fatphobia in this work is truly concerning! The casual racism is also unacceptable! It seems to be a remnant of the 90s' obsession with weight.

Despite these flaws, if one can look beyond them, there are aspects of this book that are enjoyable. The actual storytelling is quite intriguing, and it makes the reader eager to see how it all turns out. The author's tone of voice is unique and has a certain allure, almost repulsive in an addictive way.

As a side note, I can't help but think that a grown-up Vernon G Little would now be voting for Trump. It's a rather disconcerting thought.

Overall, this book is a complex and somewhat controversial piece of literature that leaves the reader with a lot to think about.

**Original Article**: This is a short article. It needs to be expanded.

**Expanded Article**:

This is a rather short article.

It is in need of expansion to provide more detailed and comprehensive information.

Perhaps we could add more examples, explain the concepts more thoroughly, or offer different perspectives.

By doing so, the article will become more engaging and useful for the readers.

It could also enhance the overall quality and value of the content.

Moreover, expanding the article might attract a wider audience and increase its shareability.

In conclusion, taking the time to expand this short article can have many benefits and make it a more worthwhile read.

29/1001 books you must read
This is an extremely strange read. The book was written sometime in the early 2000s and that vibe just comes right out of it. At times it was vulgar, completely incomprehensible and out of place. It felt like the author was writing it in a drunken frenzy. Overall, it was difficult for me to read. I was just pushing through the text and at one point caught myself thinking that I was simply not interested. Vernon is Vernon and who cares what will happen to him next. It will be just for the lovers of black humor.

This book seems to have a certain charm that might appeal to a specific audience. However, for me, it was a bit of a struggle. The writing style was inconsistent, and some of the content was quite off-putting. But perhaps that's the intention of the author, to create something that stands out and challenges the reader. I can see how some people might really enjoy this book, especially those who have a taste for the dark and the unusual. But for those who prefer more straightforward and conventional literature, this might not be the best choice.

Another book that I have read for my coming-of-age encyclopedia entry. It seems rather evident that this book won the Booker Prize perhaps because the Brits had a desire to show some sort of defiance towards America. It's almost as if they were saying, "This is what we believe you are capable of, you warmongering individuals." (Remember 2003: The Year We Went to War. The Year Everybody Across the Atlantic Started Hating Us).

In truth, there is really not much to recommend in this book. It takes a topical issue like school shootings, adds a rather blatant critique of contemporary society such as the media demeaning us. Then it throws in a plethora of cartoonish characters like the attention-seeking love interest who celebrates her boyfriend's imminent execution by posing for Penthouse - naturally! It also includes a bunch of supposedly "hip" slang and mixes it with a motif involving dookie. So, what do you end up with?

Dookie.

There is simply no book that can be recommended or whose positive features are so prominent that one can write about them.

I can say that due to the existence of all this childlike or seemingly childlike behavior and that suddenly sweet and charming foundation, I became a bit annoyed.

Perhaps it's because I expected more from the books or the characters within them.

But instead, I was met with this rather unremarkable and somewhat tiresome display.

It makes me wonder if there are truly any books out there that can live up to my expectations and provide the kind of engaging and thought-provoking content that I渴望.

Maybe I need to look harder or explore different genres to find that hidden gem.

Until then, I'll continue to be disappointed by the lackluster offerings that seem to dominate the literary landscape.