Douglas Coupland (Generation X) is a media theorist, artist, writer and designer. He's also wickedly funny, which makes his thoughts on modernity all the more biting and enjoyable. Bit Rot, a collection of essays, short fiction and pieces that are best described as miscellanea, shows off all sides of Coupland's work without ever losing his sardonic edge. Because few pieces go over five pages, the book feels like an ongoing conversation with a hilarious, intelligent friend.
Bit Rot is mostly made up of essays that both skewer and defend contemporary existence. Coupland is upfront about his own susceptibility to nostalgia, but also has little patience for anyone who believes that the world is somehow worse off due to the Internet, smartphones and the like. One might assume Coupland is a misanthropist, given his sense of humor, but he's nothing of the sort. In the piece "Stuffed," he explores hoarding from prehistoric times to the present, showing how our need for "stuff" is both pathological and simply a way of being human.
The short works of fiction dotted throughout Bit Rot provide a nice change of pace without losing sight of Coupland's arguments. By placing them alongside the essays, he's able to present his topics in different modes of discourse. This is especially welcome since he sometimes has the tendency to repeat himself in the essays (which, to be fair, should be somewhat expected in a 400-page collection). Even with that minor quibble, Bit Rot remains an engaging, thought-provoking look at the modern age through the thoughts of one smart, funny man. --Noah Cruickshank, adult engagement manager, the Field Museum, Chicago, Ill.