Worst. Person. Ever.

By: Douglas Coupland

Narrated by: James Langton

Raymond Gunt likes to think of himself as a pretty decent guy - he believes in karma, and helping his fellow man, and all that other good stuff. Sure, he can be foulmouthed, occasionally misogynistic, and can just generally rub people the wrong way - through no fault of his own! So with all the positive energy he’s creating, it’s a little perplexing to consider the recent downward spiral his life has taken.… Could the universe be trying to tell him something?

A B-unit cameraman with no immediate employment prospects, Gunt decides to accept his ex-wife Fiona’s offer to shoot a Survivor-style reality show on an obscure island in the Pacific. With his upwardly failing sidekick, Neal, in tow, Gunt somehow suffers multiple comas and unjust imprisonment, is forced to reenact the "Angry Dance" from the movie Billy Elliot, and finds himself at the center of a nuclear war - among other tribulations and humiliations.

A razor-sharp portrait of a morally bankrupt and gleefully wicked modern man, Worst. Person. Ever. is a side-splittingly funny and gloriously filthy new novel from acclaimed author Douglas Coupland. A deeply unworthy audiobook about a dreadful human being with absolutely no redeeming social value, it’s guaranteed to brighten up your day.

©2014 Douglas Coupland (P)2014 Brilliance Audio, all rights reserved. Recorded by arrangement with Blue Rider Press, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, a Penguin Random House Company.

Meh

The story was, well, entertaining at best, but I had zero connection with any of the characters. Definitely my least favorite Coupland book

Funny. Book.

What did you love best about Worst. Person. Ever.?

Crass, intelligent swearing. Great prose.

What other book might you compare Worst. Person. Ever. to and why?

Pretty much anything by Chuck Palahniuck.

What about James Langton’s performance did you like?

Distinct voices but without being annoying.

If you could rename Worst. Person. Ever., what would you call it?

Fuck. Fate.

Any additional comments?

The story is just there to support having the prose. Don't look for anything meaningful in the story.

Rude. Crude. Hilarious.

If you could sum up Worst. Person. Ever. in three words, what would they be?

He Said WHAT?

What did you like best about this story?

The over the top ridiculous sarcasm! I love sarcasm. This book reminds me of Carl Hiaasen, but much more foul (so brace yourself if that isn't your thing). I couldn't stop laughing out loud while I drove around listening!

Which scene was your favorite?

"Shat in pants during nuclear explosion!" I couldn't stop laughing.

If you could rename Worst. Person. Ever., what would you call it?

Rude. Crude. Ridiculous.

Any additional comments?

EXCELLENT READER! Great voice inflections...just a really great book that I was almost embarrassed to recommend to friends and family because it IS so rude and crude...I'm sure they'll look at me like, "You liked that?" And then I'd have to say, "I LOVED IT!!"

Quit being a boring prude and get this book.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes. Because most of my friends value cynical, crude humor.

Who was your favorite character and why?

Gunt. He's got a great appreciation for and perspective on life.

Which scene was your favorite?

Any where Gunt is commenting on sex.

If you could take any character from Worst. Person. Ever. out to dinner, who would it be and why?

Again Gunt. Mostly to give it back him about how awful British people can be.

Any additional comments?

If you enjoy George Carlin, Bad Santa, Hitchhiker's Guide, then you'll enjoy this book.
Most of you probably will not.

Classic Coupland!

Would you consider the audio edition of Worst. Person. Ever. to be better than the print version?

Yes - James Langton's amazing voice adds so much to the experience. He does a great job with the character voices and is a blast to listen to.

What was one of the most memorable moments of Worst. Person. Ever.?

I won't spoil a plot point, but there is one scene where Raymond and Neil accompany a military mission over the Pacific Ocean, and Raymond's description of what ensues is laugh out loud funny.

Have you listened to any of James Langton’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I haven't listened to any others, but I definitely will in the future.

Any additional comments?

This book is classic Coupland. A little far-fetched, a little fantastical, well-written and entertaining.

Too silly, too simple, disappointing

The first couple hours of this book were great. I laughed out loud several times, Coupland is funny, no doubt about that.
Once the story started to unfold, things fell apart.
Neil, the main character's homeless friend was good. I liked him. He was funny and a good foil to everything happening. Other than that, all the characters were lame, including the main character.
He wasn't a bad guy, his character wasn't developed enough for him to be "bad." He just had weird, unlucky things happen to him all the time, which gets old, and isn't enough for a coherent or even vaguely interesting story.
The other characters, his mom, his ex-wife, the odd women, were all very forgettable, underdeveloped, and not interesting.

With about one hour of the book left, I started watching the time, trying to decide if I could even finish it. I considered stopping again with only 17 minutes left, it was that bad. I did finish it, but it was painful.

The narrator was fine, no complaints there.

This book was especially disappointing because the first part was so promising and funny.

I love Coupland but this one was awful

I didn't find this title funny, just sort of awful. Maybe the humor is missed on me, but it just ground on and on till I had to stop and move on to something else.

So disappointing!

What could have made this a 4 or 5-star listening experience for you?

An entirely different book.

What was most disappointing about Douglas Coupland’s story?

Very quickly you get tired of listening to dumb things happen to a thoroughly pointless character. I didn't even bother to finish it.

What aspect of James Langton’s performance would you have changed?

The reading was fine.

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment then boredom. It's sort of like a car crash that you have no trouble looking away from.

Any additional comments?

Hard to believe that the author who brought us Gen X, Microserfs and Shampoo Planet created this. Watching Simpson's reruns would be more intellectually stimulating.