by Lionel Shriver
This is a mash-up of three of Shriver’s other books – THE POST-BIRTHDAY WORLD; SO MUCH FOR ALL THAT; and a dash of THE MANDIBLES. A couple decide in their 50s that they will commit joint suicide when the younger of them turns 80. All the permutations of what might happen ensue, in different chapters. To wit:
- She chickens out, he goes through with it
- She goes through with it, he chickens out
- The kids discover what’s going on and have them committed
- Instead, they just plan ahead and enjoy a boring old age in a retirement home
- They chuck the idea, live long & prosper
- They chuck the idea, & get cryogenically frozen
- They chuck the idea, & humanity discovers the means to live forever
- They chuck the idea, & live long enough to see the world disintegrate
I’m sure I’m leaving some out. It differs a bit from POST-BIRTHDAY in that there are multiple paths, not just two; and the paths diverge at different points. It echoes POST-BIRTHDAY in the fact that most of the stories echo each other with little details (a stain that looks like the shape of Norway, wild mushroom fajitas, etc.). Oh, I forgot to mention that Shriver even playfully throws in a reference to herself during the MANDIBLES alterna-plotline. Definitely fun. I am kind of glad it’s over, though; I didn’t much like either him or her.
Tytania 