Vernon God Little - DBC Pierre
The novel wastes no time in getting underway, with Vernon Godfrey Little – the main character and narrator – being detained by the authorities due to his possible connection to a school shooting. The shooter, Vernon’s friend Jesus, mentioned a second gun during his attack, and Vernon, knowing Jesus was referring to Vernon’s own rifle, is paranoid that he will be connected to the crimes. Vernon is fifteen, is obsessed with sex and swearing, and continually daydreams about his crush. As Vernon is the narrator of the story this means the book itself is also filled with language, references to sexual acts, and crudity.
It is also a strangely entertaining book and has a fairly interesting plot. Vernon keeps trying to run away from his hometown to avoid being convicted, but when he finally does this makes matters worse, as his fame over being wanted in connection with the original deaths lead to him being accused of every murder in his home state during his runaway period.
In case it isn’t yet apparent, the book is a sort of dark comedy, exaggerating reality to create a satirical world where conmen keep getting TV reporting roles, refrigerators never arrive when ordered, and death row inmates find themselves “voted out” a la Big Brother.
Although the coarseness of Vernon himself prevents me from embracing the book wholeheartedly, Vernon God Little does succeed in holding my attention, surprising me with a few of the plot twists, and providing a satisfying and well-executed ending. It may not personally be my favourite, but I can understand its appeal to a worldly audience.
Completed 19 January 2018.
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