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Eleanor Rigby
A Novel
by Douglas Coupland


7.2

based on 18 reviews
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based on 10 votes
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JPod

The Generation X author's latest novel centers on a lonely 36-year-old woman living in Vancouver, whose life takes a sudden change after the unexpected arrival of her 20-year-old son whom she had given up for adoption at birth.

Bloomsbury USA, 256 pages
01/10/2005
$22.95

ISBN: 1582345236

Fiction
General Literature & Fiction

All reviews are classified as one of five grades: Outstanding (4 points), Favorable (3), Mixed (2), Unfavorable (1) and Terrible (0). To calculate the Metascore, we divide total points achieved by the total points possible (i.e., 4 x the number of reviews), with the resulting percentage (multiplied by 100) being the Metascore. Learn more...

Publishers Weekly

[A] clever, inspired, brilliantly strange tale. [15 Nov 2004, p.98]

Kirkus Reviews

Extremely funny yet quite moving (and even plausible): could be one of the first great novels of the new century. [15 Oct 2004, p.975]

Los Angeles Times Carmela Ciuraru

The most impressive novel he has written in years. [4 Jan 2005]

Daily Telegraph Alastair Sooke

Eleanor Rigby is one of Coupland's subtlest indictments yet of Yankee-yuppie culture.

Daily Telegraph Katie Owen

At times one feels, uncomfortably, a certain glibness to Coupland's treatment of his emotive, potentially tragic, material, but there are the compensations of skilful plotting and appealing characters.

The Guardian Ali Smith

Funny, unexpected and fragile.... Hey Nostradamus! suggested a mature wholeness of conception in Coupland's new work. Eleanor Rigby, in which the lost get found and the cosmic gets real, does this too, with a goodness of heart that is actually inspiring.

The Independent Susie Boyt

Coupland's arrangement of the joy and pain of his characters' lives is daring and inspiring, and its surprises linger long in the mind.

The Spectator Jonathan Keates

Eleanor Rigby can doubtless be read as the latest of his meditations on the conflict between spiritual and material elements in modern existence, but the continuing air of comic obtuseness surrounding his heroine mutes any potential preachiness.

San Francisco Chronicle Reagan Upshaw

Coupland's ear for the vernacular is solid, and his prose is lean and stripped, making for a fast read.

Boston Globe Adam Mansbach

Succeeds almost entirely because the first-person narration of its protagonist is so charming and so real.

Houston Chronicle Nora Seton

Don't let the ridiculous or implausible characters irritate you, either. Eleanor Rigby is fun. Coupland's writing is a fast river of fresh perceptions and comic dialogue.

USA Today Maria Fish

The significance of chance, the brevity of life and the function of families are themes central to Eleanor Rigby. They are made especially vivid by Coupland's strange and inventive presentation.

Booklist Donna Seaman

Coyly cosmic, dead-on in its emotional and social perceptions, pointedly hilarious, and richly entertaining. [15 Nov 2004, p.560]

Washington Post Heather Havrilesky

As readable and entertaining as Coupland's writing has been since his widely read first novel, Generation X, was published in 1991, there's no conflict here, and nothing moves the story forward because it's not clear what any of the characters really needs.

The Globe And Mail [Toronto] T. F. Rigelhof

This is a sloppy, soppy, gloppy book, not an utterly bad one. [13 Nov 2004, p.D15]

Library Journal Kevin Greczek

Unfortunately, he ultimately falls back on old standbys (e.g., zany plot twists) and a surfeit of caustically hip turns of phrase that dismantle most everything of substance developed in the book's beginning. [1 Dec 2004, p.98]

Entertainment Weekly Jennifer Reese

The vigorous first third of Eleanor Rigby introduces some sharp, witty characters and an intriguingly bizarre premise. But Coupland fritters it all away in a series of silly, nihilistic narrative stunts.

The New York Times Emily Nussbaum

Dwindles chapter by chapter into a high-art twist on chick lit -- aiming for bittersweet but tasting at last suspiciously of artificial sweetener.

The average user rating for this book is 7.2 (out of 10) based on 10 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

[Anonymous] gave it a9:
A great book that looks at human life, second chances, and finding yourself. Well written and fun to read from start to finish

BARBARA B gave it a4:
Curious tale, consciously contrived to appeal to those who read novels seeking the bizarre, strange or super cool . Little attempt to have a coherent and credible story with any plot development, hence it lags and dips and finally amounts to very little, save the obvious attempts at cleverness. About style and not much else.

I Moore gave it a4:
I'm a big fan of Coupland, but this book misses the mark--NY Times review gets it right. A disappointment.

Hollis H gave it a1:
This book was awful. It was even worse the second time. Doesn't this guy have anything better to do with his time than write dumb books? I mean really.

matteo s gave it a9:
another thougthful provocative read from our generation's great wordsmith. a series of confusing, mesmerizing images told as only coupland can in a tale that sticks to the ribs days after it's comsumed. Not his best, but more entertaining then most everyone else's.

Jeff L gave it an8:
If you like Coupland- You'll like this book!

Don gave it a10:
I think it is both brilliant and hilarious!

Eleanor Rigby A Novel by Douglas Coupland

Eleanor Rigby
A Novel
by Douglas Coupland