On the Shelf: Worst. Person. Ever.

WORST. PERSON. EVER. | Douglas Coupland | Random House Canada | October 2013

Meet Raymond Gunt. A decent chap who tries to do the right thing. Or, to put it another way, the worst person ever: a foul-mouthed, misanthropic cameraman, trailing creditors, ex-wives and unhappy homeless people in his wake. Men dislike him, women flee from him. Worst. Person. Ever. is a deeply unworthy book about a dreadful human being with absolutely no redeeming social value. Gunt, in the words of the author, "is a living, walking, talking, hot steaming pile of pure id." He's a B-unit cameraman who enters an amusing downward failure spiral that takes him from London to Los Angeles and then on to an obscure island in the Pacific where a major American TV network is shooting a Survivor-style reality show. Along the way, Gunt suffers multiple comas and unjust imprisonment, is forced to re-enact the 'Angry Dance' from the movie Billy Elliot and finds himself at the centre of a nuclear war. We also meet Raymond's upwardly failing sidekick, Neal, as well as Raymond's ex-wife, Fiona, herself 'an atomic bomb of pain'.

Oh man. This book is cringe-worthy. Coupland has somehow indeed crafted the worst character to ever grace the pages of fiction. There's nothing redeeming about Raymond Gunt. Everything he thinks, everything he does, everything he says is terrible. I doubt there was a time I wasn't staring at the pages in shock while I read Worst. Person. Ever. This book will make you feel uncomfortable, but remember: just because you're reading it (from Gunt's horrible point of view) doesn't mean you agree with anything going on.

I'm pretty sure this book is supposed to be humorous. I don't think I laughed out loud because I wasn't sure I was allowed to. My reaction to this book was mainly me trying to suppress any urge I had to smirk or laugh because Raymond Gunt really is that dreadful. He's crude and selfish. He treats everyone around him with zero respect. Even the people he associates with aren't all that great of human beings. But I guess that's the point. Are any of us really that great if we bear our secrets and inner thoughts?

The plot of Worst. Person. Ever. is insane. Raymond Gunt's word spirals out of control and he goes on a completely unrealistic adventure filled with bad luck and necessary karma. Everything that can go bad does go bad. The book is completely original. You'll have no idea where the plot is going and it's a great, fast-paced, crazy ride.

Worst. Person. Ever. is also filled with well-placed pop culture references and passages similar to footnotes that explain the most random of people, places, and things. These 'footnotes' were my favourite part of the book: informative, but filled with Gunt's detestable wit and humour.

Warning: This book isn't for the faint of heart.