<< 1 >>
Rating: 
Summary: Definitely Vancouver, but one person's view
Review: Imagine following Highway 99 south from Whistler down through West and North Vancouver, across the Second Narrows Bridge, along Boundary Road, crossing into Richmond, picking up the 99 again, and driving straight through to Seattle. Now, pay attention only to what you can see (Mount Baker, for instance), or things that are to your right -- west of the Vancouver-Burnaby border. Observe and comment on those things lucidly and with humour. But ignore the vast suburbs stretching to the east. Spend more time on Bellingham than on New Westminster. You have an idea of this book. Like Coupland's other works, it demonstrates keen insight about a limited part of its subject -- this case, Vancouver. He is a North Shore boy, and it shows. Worth reading, but definitely only one person's view.
Rating: 
Summary: A love ode to Vancouver
Review: Sure, it's only one person's view of Vancouver. But at least it's Douglas Coupland's view. In "City of Glass," the author of "All Families Are Psychotic" and "Generation X" strays from fiction to write about his home city. The result is a subdued love ode to Vancouver, peppered with photographs.
Coupland describes Vancouver with many page-long vignettes, sort of like a patchwork quilt: he describes feng shui in Vancouver, Japanese teenagers, a harbour full of sulfur piles, American couples on "love boats," monstrous houses, and the quiet detachment that Vancouver feels from the Rest of Canada. (Which has its own entry -- really!)
Coupland's fiction is generally distinguishable for its contemplative, cynically witty tones. But he drops all that for "City of Glass." Okay, there is a chunk of "Life After God" in the middle, blurry text and pics. And occasionally the transcripts of Coupland's memories remind one of his fiction, seeming sadder and darker.
Most of the time, he sounds fond and reminiscent, as if reliving the memories that come with salmon and fleece. Not to mention funny, such as when describing the confusing disagreements about feng shui (" this space should flowwwwww" or "flow is to be avoided at all costs"). And the photographs are quite good as well, with Coupland taking pictures of the prosaic subjects of his book -- a sleepy-looking Japanese teen, a fleece vest, a boat floating out on a light-filled harbor, a skiier in mid-twist on a sunlit hillside.
"City of Glass" isn't exactly going to make you race to Vancouver, but it will make you appreciate the little hidden facets of the city -- and perhaps make you notice the ones in your own.
Rating: 
Summary: a personal vancouver alphabet
Review: This book presents a charming, personal view of the city of Vancouver, BC, by an author both at home in and in love with his city. It is organized as an alphabet book, but this is just an excuse. Vancouver is a major city on the edge of one of the last great frontiers. It joins the Canadian wilderness and the Pacific Rim. It is a peculiar city of what we in the USA call the "Northwest', both cosmopolitan and local. I've read the book several times, both in Vancouver and at home, and I've enjoyed sharing with the author each time.
Rating:
Summary: Beyond Stanley Park, Robson St and Granville Island.....
Review: This book will leave you aching for Vancouver, whether you've been there before or not. I have, but never lived it the way Coupland has. This is more than a travel book; it'll take you into the underside, and the overside, and every side Vancouver has. Vancouver is lushly fertile and starkly commercial, historical and modern; Vancouver is Every City, with an emergent personality all its own. Until you can get there to see it yourself, buy this book, keep it on your coffee table, and dive with Coupland into his own bizarre Vancouver dreams.
Rating:
Summary: May as well buy a ticket now...
Review: This book will leave you aching for Vancouver, whether you've been there before or not. I have, but never lived it the way Coupland has. This is more than a travel book; it'll take you into the underside, and the overside, and every side Vancouver has. Vancouver is lushly fertile and starkly commercial, historical and modern; Vancouver is Every City, with an emergent personality all its own. Until you can get there to see it yourself, buy this book, keep it on your coffee table, and dive with Coupland into his own bizarre Vancouver dreams.
Rating:
Summary: Homesick book
Review: This is my homesick book, my security blanket, my Postcards from Home. For Vancouverites, it's a source of boosterist pride, a good chuckle at some in-jokes, and perhaps enlightenment on why things are as they are. For people who have moved away, it's a book of memories, recollections of a city of glass and the people who make it. For people who have never been there, it's the tourist guide that talks about things the Lonely Planet won't. It's like having Mr Coupland sitting next to you as you make your way through our city. It's probably as close to an autobiography as he's ever written. The mark of Vancouver is on him as it's on me, and on everyone else who was raised there. Yeah, I love my hometown.
Rating:
Summary: Vancouver from the inside
Review: This is not a story by D. Coupland but rather short anecdotes about his hometown Vancouver. I found this book very "canadian": he describes a city and its culture that has changed a lot with the past decades. A must read if you are like me an afficionado of Douglas.
Rating:
Summary: Quick, delightful read.
Review: Though this book is rather short on length, it does an excellent job of portraying an excellent city. Writing about one aspect of any city for each letter of the alphabet is a daunting task for anyone, and Coupland pulls it off with aplomb.
<< 1 >>
|
