Pierre, DBC: *1961

Vernon God Little, 2003 - Information about the Book

General Information | Facts | Articles

General Information
- The life of Vernon Little, a normal teenager, falls apart when his best friend, Jesus Navarro, murders their classmates in the schoolyard before killing himself
- Information from Wikipedia
- Reader Rating:
Facts
- The book does not criticize the American culture, but the way the world perceives it through the media, especially TV, says DBC Pierre.
- Awards:
  
  Some of the most notable awards are:
  Man Booker Prize: one of the highest honors in English-language literature. The Booker judges praised the novel's inventive use of language and idiomatic voice.
  Whitbread Book Award: (now called the Costa Book Award) for Best First Novel.
  Bollinger Everyman Wodehouse Prize for Comic Fiction in 2003
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- Characters
  
  Vernon Gregory Little - The 15-year-old protagonist and narrator. Vernon is an outcast in his small Texas town of Martirio. After his friend Jesus commits a school shooting, Vernon becomes a suspect and the target of media frenzy, despite his innocence.
  Doris Little - Vernon's overweight, single mother who is more concerned with material possessions than her son's well-being.
  
  Eulalio "Lally" Ledesma - An unscrupulous reporter who seduces Doris to get close to Vernon and create sensationalized news stories implicating Vernon in the shooting for fame and profit.
  
  Taylor Figueroa - Vernon's love interest who betrays him to Lally in hopes of achieving fame.
  
  Deputy Vaine Gurie - A police officer from a prominent local family who interrogates Vernon about the shooting.
  
  Sheriff Porkorney - The sheriff who accuses Vernon of being Jesus's gay lover to frame him for the shooting.
  
  Palmyra "Pam" - Doris's best friend who is even larger than Doris.
  
  Abdini - Vernon's incompetent but well-meaning public defender.
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- Topics
  
  Mass Shootings and Violence
  The novel opens in the aftermath of a Columbine-style mass shooting at Vernon's high school, setting the stage for an examination of gun violence, school shootings, and their impact on communities. Vernon is wrongly accused of being an accomplice, satirizing the rush to judgment and media sensationalism surrounding such tragedies.
  Capital Punishment
  Vernon is sentenced to death for the school shooting, despite his innocence. The novel is an unequivocal condemnation of the death penalty and the flaws in the American justice system that allow for wrongful convictions. Pierre's satire exposes the immorality and injustice of capital punishment.
  
  American Culture and Values
  The novel takes a scathing look at various aspects of American culture - materialism, narcissism, media sensationalism, the legal system's failures, and more. It satirizes the "trashy way of life" exemplified by greed, overconsumption, and obsession with media attention among its characters.
  
  Adolescence and Coming-of-Age
  At its core, "Vernon God Little" is a darkly comedic coming-of-age story about a teenager forced to confront harsh realities about the adult world. Vernon's foul-mouthed narration captures the contradictory rush of teenage life with brilliant authenticity.
  
  In tackling these weighty topics through biting satire and the unique perspective of its young anti-hero, "Vernon God Little" emerged as a controversial but insightful look at modern American society and its flaws.
  Developed by Perplexity AI
Articles
- An Irreverent Novel that falters: "Pierre refrains from any solutions till almost the end of the novel: highlighting the fate of the present, the nature of defeat, loss of meaning and non-availability of any alternative meanings." Rahul Vaidya; March 10, 2014
- "Vernon God Little" and the Influence of Mass Media: "It is evident that DBC Pierre makes Vernon constantly compare things to TV movies and shows to draw special attention to their outstanding, often subconscious impact."
- Author 'I decided the book should taste like a lime' DBC Pierre on writing Vernon God Little. The Guardian; Augut 8, 2020
- Author DBC Pierre talks about Vernon God Little. SwissEduc; host: Hans Fischer. Basel; November 13, 2007
- Author DBC Pierre divulges the hidden workings of his rebellious Columbine-inspired novel: His narrator, a disguised St. Peter, retells Christ's story, using a uniquely profane American vernacular. Bookworm with Michael Silverblatt; January 08, 2004
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