Hey Nostradamus! - Douglas Coupland > Reviews > Is there any hope in this world?

Author's product rating:   

Would you listen to it again?	Absolutely
Story	Good
Characters	Outstanding
Listenability	Once you start it, you won't be able to switch it off!
How does it compare to similar audio books?	Excellent
How does it compare to audio works by the same author?	Excellent

Advantages:	Beautifully written, engaging characters, thought - provoking
Disadvantages:	Makes you think  -  and some people don't like to be made to think

Recommend to potential buyers:

yes

Full review

Hey Nostradamus is one of those books that stays with you, that haunts you, that you can't get out of your head. The themes, the issues, the characters and the events replay constantly, and can jump out at you unexpectedly for a long time after the book has been replaced on the shelves. It deals with many of the deepest concerns of early twenty-first century humanity - the capacity for violence and for love, the power of the media, trust, faith, truth and certainty. Clearly inhabiting a post September 11th 2001 literary landscape, though the terrible events of that day are never mentioned, the book does not offer answers, but explores the questions in a profound and moving way.

Told by four people over the course of fifteen years, the book's central focus is a high-school shooting which has profound effects on the lives of the people involved and the people who know them. Everything else in the narrative is seen in the light of the moment when three students chose, for reasons which remain unclear, to shoot many of their classmates in cold blood in the summer of 1988. The first portion of the book is told from the perspective of one of their victims, Cheryl. Then, eleven years later, her boyfriend Jason takes up the tale, followed five years later by his lover Heather, and finally, after another year's gap, by Jason's father Reg. Each of them remains haunted by the events of 1988, even Heather, the only one of the four not intimately connected - she is forever aware of the effect that the shootings had on Jason. Discussing the plot here would be pointless, not only as I would immediately spoil many of the books surprises (in fact, I haven't even been totally honest in my brief description of one of the characters), but also because the beauty of the book is in the details, the minute observation of critical moments.

Each of the four narrators has a strongly individual voice, and as each of them sees things in a different way, they each shed light on the narratives of those who came before them. It soon becomes clear that different people will interpret the same words and actions in different ways, and the book's author refuses to make any one of his characters' world-views the 'right' one. They all differ on politics, social issues and religious faith, they all trust others to a different extent, and in their own way, each is seeking for meaning. But Douglas Coupland's voice remains absent, and it is this that makes the book so thought-provoking. If the all-knowing author had intruded, the answers would be apparent and would probably be forgotten.

Cheryl simultaneously conveys youthful enthusiasm and a zest for life with a peaceful acceptance of events. Her religious faith is strong and bright and her approach to life is refreshingly direct. Her description of a seemingly normal morning struck me early on as a wonderful in-character set of sentences, totally at odds from the way I would expect the author to see the world:

"The air was see-your-breath chilly, and the front lawn was crunchy with frost, as though each blade had been batter-fried. The brilliant blue and black Steller's jays were raucous and clearly up to no good on the eaves trough..."

The writing feels real and totally un-booky throughout this section, as Cheryl describes the shootings and flashes back over important events before this, including her conversion, her relationship with Jason and the speculation that this relationship leads to among the members of 'Youth Alive', an evangelical Christian group.

Jason's narrative, which largely looks back to the same day and the weeks that followed, is in stark contrast to Cheryl's. His position on faith is far less certain, and he is much less at ease with himself and with the world in general. He is writing with a specific purpose, to two specific people and he places higher values on exact facts and numbers than Cheryl does. Deeply hurt by the events of 1988, Jason only really comes alive when referring to his dog Joyce.

Heather writes as catharsis, in order to cope with some unsettling and sad events unfolding in her life. Her writings are not intended to be read by anyone, a fact which becomes abundantly clear as she starts writing in a very inappropriate place. Heather's narrative is probably the most humorous of the four, and glows with warmth and happiness as she looks back over her relationship with Jason, despite the strange things which are happening to her. From her point of view, certain characters who initially seemed cold and distant gain a touch of pathos and humanity and we see the effect that she has had on Jason.

Finally, Reg, Jason's strict and slightly scary father, writes directly to Jason, in what amounts to a confessional. Reg's life is filled with regrets and misunderstandings, and he has a deep need for these to be resolved. This is the most self-conscious of the four sections, as well as the shortest, as Reg constantly second-guesses himself and is frustrated that his words don't seem to convey what he wants them to convey. And in a moment that makes the book seem topsy-turvy, he ends on a note of hopefulness.

Thus, as we move from a seemingly happy and confident young woman, to a sad and confused old man, the tone of each character's final words becomes more positive. Despite trying, even horrific, circumstances, there is hope, there is goodness, there is right. And maybe, just maybe, there is meaning and there is God.

I found this book incredibly moving because each of these four disparate characters is direct, open and honest. They don't hide who they are as they write, though they may hide it from the world around them, and each of them has secrets they are unwilling or unable to share. They are open about their brokenness, their uncertainty and their pain and thus, when the moments of happiness, certainty and hope arrive they are all the more meaningful. As they are all written differently, with their own idiosyncratic modes of expression, they become real and I, as a reader, can not help but care about them, to laugh when they laugh and to be genuinely moved when they cry. Also, although each of the sections is clearly and openly written, I have found that there is a lot in the book to be unpacked and a lot to be gained from it on re-reading. There are so many moments of insightful observation that the issue of knowing how things end doesn't matter at all.

Because it is a thought-provoking book, it's not one I'd recommend for the beach or the daily commute, but for quiet, undisturbed evenings when you are free to read and to think as much as you'd like. The book is sad in its overall tone - unsurprising given the central event - but reading it doesn't leave me down. Thoughtful and subdued, but not depressed. I have tried to find fault with the book, but I really can't. I honestly think that this is a flawless piece of writing, and it definitely occupies a spot in my top ten books. I have read several Coupland novels and his style varies hugely from book to book. He's always highly readable, but this is his most direct, engaging and moving book. Oh, and the book's title? It soon becomes clear what that's about, as it comes directly from the words of one of the characters.

The edition that I have of this book is published by Harper Perennial (ISBN 0007162510, recommended retail price £7.99) and has a wonderful 'P.S.' section at the back. This is fifteen pages of background about the book and the author, including the parallels with the shooting at Columbine as well as some photographs of some of the author's intriguing art. It is definitely possible to appreciate the book without this section, but I would recommend this edition over the others available.