A very beautiful, yet also very disturbing book. I bought it 1 1/2 weeks before I went to a trip to Canada to visit my brother with the rest of my family and also went to the location of the book, Vancouver. Yet I didn't know that when I bought the book!
I'll wait for some time and race through it again, and then make it a BookRing.

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After making love for the first time, high school senior Karen Ann McNeil confides to her boyfriend Richard of the dark visions she's been recently suffering. It's only a few hours later on that snowy Friday night in 1979 that she descends into a coma. Nine months later she gives birth to a daughter, Megan, her child by Richard, the protagonist of this disturbingly funny novel.
Karen remains comatose for the next seventeen years. Richard and her circle of friends reside in an emotional purgatory throughout the next two decades; passing through careers as models, film special effects technicians, doctors, and demolition experts, before finally being reunited on a conspiracy-driven supernatural television series.

Upon Karen's reawakening, life grows as surreal as their television show. With apocalyptic events occurring, Karen, Richard, and their friends explore the essential mysteries of life, faith, decency, and existence. Amid the world's rubble they attempt to restore their own humanity.

This book goes to:
1. Vargas
2. fannynatalie
3. SabinaLorenz
4. Dani75
5. anitakorn

Homework for all BookRing participants: When reading, underline every song title you can find in the book with a pencil (some are not very obvious) and write your name on the sidelines to "score". Do not erase previous underlinings!
EXTRA BONUS for the line referring to the book title (it's in there, I know it!)!

Released on Monday, December 20, 2004 at about 11:00:00 AM BX time (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada) at Cafe "zum Schwammerl" Siebenbrunneng.14, 1050 Wien in Wien, Wien Austria.

RELEASE NOTES:

Endlich geht das Buch an den ersten Ringteilnehmer, Vargas. Hat sich also doch ausgezahlt, mir ständig schlechtes Gewissen wegen der MeetUps zu machen ;-).

Viel Spaß damit, und die Hausübung nicht vergessen (siehe oben)!

von Kuranes beim Stammtisch im Schwammerl erhalten.

surreal und distubing. wie erwartet.

Hoffe, dass es ok ist, dass ich Julie28 noch vor fannynatalie eingeschoben habe....

Released on Monday, January 10, 2005 at about 8:00:00 AM BX time (GMT-06:00) Central Time (US & Canada) at Cafè Schwammerl in Cafe "Zum Schwammerl" 1050 Wien, Wien Austria.

RELEASE NOTES:

hab es an julie28 weitergegeben, die mir das buch dann wieder zurück gibt ... und dann geht es weiter an fannynatalie

Von Vargas bekommen, wird wohl etwas dauern, bis ich damit durch bin...

Got the book yesterday from Vargas. Nobody has done the homework so far and I don't know, if I am the right person to start it, because I am rather bad in remembering song titles or lines. Well, let's see!

Finished the book yesterday. I found it rather disturbing and not at all funny. It reminds us of how short life actually is and that we waste a lot of time by doing boring jobs, being consumers only and sleeping away our days. Nevertheless I thought that the author treated the topic in a shallow way and that his criticism was free from answers to the problem.

I started to do the homework, but did not have the time to continue after the first chapter. In addition I also did not like the idea of writing into the book very much.

RELEASE NOTES:

Wird für SabinaLorenz hinterlegt.

am Samstag im Pickwicks geholt

Finally I was able to finish reading the book. It took me that long, because I didn't like the pace in which the story was told. Karen wakes up and then nothing particilarly interesting is going to happen for some time and pages.
The part about the destroyed world was confusing and alarming, but somehow I even missed to get the Author's point. Of course we waste our times with jobs and distraction and other useless things, but I didn't get any answer from the book.
BTW: I don't think, that adults would like to destroy everything, which is around them, because they are bored and without a goal in their life.
So the end was rather frustrating and to me, it wasn't an end at all. It would have been interesting to see the change in Richard, Pam, Wendy and the others.
Anyhow, it was interesting to read, but I didn't find any song titles ;-) Sorry for that!

RELEASE NOTES:

Book has been sent to Dani75 in Germany

Received the book today. Looking forward to reading it.

I liked the story very much end enjoyed reading it!

It´s now on the way to anitakorn by mail :)