Vernon Little is a 15-year old boy living in Martirio, Texas, and his best friend, Jesus, has murdered 16 of their classmates before killing himself. Since the murderer is dead, the town wants vengeance and turns its sight on Vernon, assuming he must have been part of his best friend's evil plot. As the book begins, Vernon has been arrested and being questioned by a deputy sheriff. In a style that will be repeated often throughout the book, the deputy i
sn't too concerned with the truth as Vernon wants to tell it, but rather one that fits her idea of what the truth should be. The following exchange sets up many of the ideas for the rest of the book:
'Uh-huh. Let me explain that my job is to uncover the truth. Before you think that's a hard thing to do, I'll remind you that, stuss-tistically, only two major forces govern life in this world. Can you name the two forces underlying all life in this world?'
'Uh -- wealth and poverty?'
'Not wealth and poverty.'
'Good and evil?'
'No -- Cause and effect. And before we start I want you to name the two categories of people that inhabit our world. Can you name the two proven categories of people?'
'Causers and effecters?'
'No. Citizens -- and liars. Are you with me Mister Little. Are you here?'
Wealth and poverty, good and evil, cause and effect, these are all themes DBC Pierre explores in the novel. Vernon, however, has trouble understanding any of them. He's a keen observer of the world, though, and much of the fun in this novel comes from Vernon's take on life. He describes the unattractive qualities of the local teenage slut when the boys saw her naked, "It cured us of any horniness we might have." He notices the constant half-smile and false laughs of the attorneys and wondered if they were born to the profession. "Maybe they let a hooshy laugh slip when they were babies, and their folks said, 'Look, honey, an attorney.'"
As Vernon goes in search of these truths to understand his life, we too can learn something from him. Take a chance with Vernon Little and you just might be surprised at what you find.
Reviewed by Riswan Lintang-RL
sn't too concerned with the truth as Vernon wants to tell it, but rather one that fits her idea of what the truth should be. The following exchange sets up many of the ideas for the rest of the book:'Uh-huh. Let me explain that my job is to uncover the truth. Before you think that's a hard thing to do, I'll remind you that, stuss-tistically, only two major forces govern life in this world. Can you name the two forces underlying all life in this world?'
'Uh -- wealth and poverty?'
'Not wealth and poverty.'
'Good and evil?'
'No -- Cause and effect. And before we start I want you to name the two categories of people that inhabit our world. Can you name the two proven categories of people?'
'Causers and effecters?'
'No. Citizens -- and liars. Are you with me Mister Little. Are you here?'
Wealth and poverty, good and evil, cause and effect, these are all themes DBC Pierre explores in the novel. Vernon, however, has trouble understanding any of them. He's a keen observer of the world, though, and much of the fun in this novel comes from Vernon's take on life. He describes the unattractive qualities of the local teenage slut when the boys saw her naked, "It cured us of any horniness we might have." He notices the constant half-smile and false laughs of the attorneys and wondered if they were born to the profession. "Maybe they let a hooshy laugh slip when they were babies, and their folks said, 'Look, honey, an attorney.'"
As Vernon goes in search of these truths to understand his life, we too can learn something from him. Take a chance with Vernon Little and you just might be surprised at what you find.
Reviewed by Riswan Lintang-RL
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