Praise for Highly Inappropriate Tales for Young People by Douglas Coupland and Graham Roumieu
NATIONAL BESTSELLER (The Globe and Mail)
Featured in the Mirror (Montreal) fall arts preview [Sept. 2011]
Featured in the National Post Fall Preview [2011]
A Winnipeg Free Press/Canadian Press Featured Book for fall 2011
Featured in the Quill & Quire Fall Preview [July/Aug. 2011]
“Seven short tales of intense irony and weirdness . . . accompanied by marvelous and moody sketches and drawings. . . . A charming and also unsettling reading experience. . . . Flashes of brilliance. . . . A lovely, quirky book.” —Michel Basilières, Toronto Star
“Roald Dahl meets Stephen King in seven warped children’s-story parodies where Coupland’s understated prose is made all the funnier by Roumieu’s gleefully depraved illustrations. With such cuddly heroes as a murderous juice box and an alcoholic, kleptomaniac minivan, the duo take a sly dig at corporate capitalism—think Generation X-cess.” —National Post
“[Coupland’s] clearly not afraid to try something new. . . . And [this book] is certainly something new. . . . The tone is playful, simple and winking. Most of the time, it’s best just to go with the flow without asking too many questions or over-thinking things. . . . The writing . . . maintains its Coupland voice. . . . Both disturbing and hilarious. . . . The illustrations give life to the book, bringing the oddball characters out of the text and into the world. Roumieu’s dark, twisted work reminds me of Quentin Blake’s beautifully perfect illustrations for Roald Dahl’s classic children’s books. . . . A well-executed series of quirky stories that are imaginative and often funny. Also, for the record, Coupland’s dust-jacket author photo is spectacular. If you’ve never seen a Canadian literary icon’s head wrapped in elastic bands, well, Coupland delivers. Your move, Margaret Atwood.” —Edmonton Journal
“The stories are filled with genuine laugh-out-loud moments, usually resulting from the ridiculously deadpan dialogue. . . . While the collection is very clearly a product of Coupland’s strange and unique mind, Roumieu’s illustrations are excellent complements to the stories. . . . These sketches are just as darkly funny as the story itself.” —Quill & Quire
“No matter if you are old or young . . . this collection of cruel fables will undoubtedly charm. If you’ve been waiting for the gleeful pleasure of seeing cartoon characters getting to beat up the unsuspecting, or mock the foreign, or make small children puke, then this book is for you.” —Sonnet L'Abbé, The Globe and Mail
“The mind of Douglas Coupland must be a scary place to live. Proof: this . . . book. . . . Illustrated by the talented Graham Roumieu . . . [it] is . . . a feast for adult eyes only. (Vomit has never looked so painterly.) So, those of you who have ever wondered what kind of trouble a Hobo Minivan with Extremely Low Morals can get into can take a soothing breath: the wait is over this month.” —ELLE Canada
“Anyone who has ever wondered what might transpire if the author of Bigfoot’s autobiography were to illustrate a story collection by Canada’s reigning postmodern ironist can stop wondering.” ––Quill & Quire
“Graham [Roumieu]’s illustrations amped up the funny. . . . He may very well be a spiritual successor to Quentin Blake.” —Drawn
“If you like Edward Gorey’s irony, or the wickedest tales in Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk (David Sedaris), Coupland’s demented collection of short stories is for you.” —Lindy Reads and Reviews (blog)