Our Tragic Universe

by Scarlett Thomas | 384 pages, published 2010

Another book that I’m not sure who recommended it or how it ended up on my reading list. And, another one I wish I’d skipped and would enjoy having a paper copy to throw in the trash. (I read it on the Kindle.)

This is a story-within-a-story-within-a-story, but they’re all awful stories. The main character is a writer, but also a very philosophical individual who has long conversations with like-minded individuals in ways that I doubt real people ever converse. I don’t know anyone who I care to listen to paragraphs of without giving me a chance to ask questions or share my opinion. The conversations in the book end up being more like staged debates – lengthy ones – than anything realistic. I do enjoy discussing deep matters; I like talking with well-educated, opinionated people; I hated the conversations in the book.

I also hated the bigger and smaller stories. The book seemed to be written as a way of saying, “Look what non-story-format writing I can do because I’m a real author!” That was even the point of the main character’s writing. High-brow? I don’t know, I think maybe this was just a dumb idea. But it has great reviews on Amazon. What is wrong with the world? Or is something wrong with me?

Buy Our Tragic Universe on Amazon