Lights Out In Wonderland By DBC Pierre
Source: Received from Publisher
Rating
Synopsis: Gabriel's adventure takes in a spell in rehab, a near-death experience with fugu ovaries, a sexual encounter with an octopus, and finally an orgiastic feast in the bowels of Berlin 's majestic Tempelhof Airport
My Thoughts- The story follows twenty five year old Gabriel Brockwell. Now he is a very complex character and I may have just spent half my time trying to get to know him more than anything else. Abused by his father he has been sent to rehab. Gabriel is now determined to kill himself. Now I know this is a serious issue, but the fact that it was so hilariously done made me not take him seriously at all. Every time he had the opportunity to kill himself he took the other route which made me think if he was possibly attention seeking all along, not to mention he always somehow managed to make a very serious issue - humorous. I don't think I have read anything quite like this novel before. One personal con for me might be the fact that it didn't flow for me, not exactly in such a negative way, what I'm trying to say is that the story wasn't as fast paced as I would have liked it to be.
What I noticed was that in order to know what was going on I really had to pay attention, okay so your probably thinking well duh! Isn't that what you’re supposed to do? Well I like my reads to flow fast to the point where without knowing I am already halfway through because I was so engrossed, but this time I was aware of every page I turned which was slightly off putting for me. What over rode that factor was the uniqueness of this book. It does contain some graphic scenes and explicit content so I would recommend it to 15+.
Upon deciding that he has exactly one day to live he goes in search of his good friend Smut who was equally as crazy as him. If I thought Gabriel was out of his mind then this duo was insane! The situations these two managed to get themselves stuck in were equally horrible but amusing! I laughed a lot I will admit but I can't even name a particular favourite scene because it's so inappropriate! Despite the heavy setting of the book the author managed to make Gabriel's journey an uplifting one, basically they are cringe worthy lovable, I can't say that this book is everyone's cup of tea but for those that will get into it will love it!
PS - Just to let you know, there are a lot of great characters that I have not mentioned as well as some great parts of the book, but I want to leave that for you readers to discover if you decide to take a personal peek yourself. If you do, let me know. I would love to discuss your thoughts on the book!
Thank you to Faber and Faber for providing me a copy for review
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