Out of Touch - Book Club February '11

I got dragged into those places regularly in my 20s, and they were much like that. Over time, their focus has shifted more and more to the "exclusivity" that comes with offerings like bottle service, though it's less true in Kansas City (here they still have to cater to regular folk, too) than places like Vegas and NYC. They're for people who want to be seen more than heard, and I'm the exact opposite (Brandon knows not to call me when clubs are on the agenda — haha). So anyway, yeah. But it wouldn't bother me if they were heightened with some fictional license, as that's his job.

This was a fun read. I am a very slow reader, reading many books at a time, but this book made me put everything else on hold to finish it. It's been almost a year since that has happened.

First of all, the list was absolutely engrossing. I really liked being able to see the reasoning behind the items. I hated Aidin at the beginning of this book. I never really did come around to liking him--(I don't think that this is a spoiler because it happened at the beginning of the book) he was a rapist--but I did start rooting for his slow metamorphisis after each completed task (I actually didn't realize that I was rooting for this until his set back--nicely done).

I liked Dana--her character as well as what she was to Aidin--I wish I could've seen a little more of her but that would've been redundant. Any more would've taken the reader too far away from the plot.

Did anyone else find the plot twist to come up abruptly? It was disturbing at first but, as I read on, it did work... but that really threw me for a loop while reading.

And, the ending--I'm not going to go into details but after all the references to Chuck et al. (especially Chuck)--surprised me.

To leave with, the super human drug (as called earlier in the thread) is an awesome idea--it works well on so many levels.

Hey everyone - great discussion. Thanks so much for participating.

Feel free to post some final thoughts.

Here are mine - the thing I like most about OOT is the precision with which Tietz writes. His sentences (and by default, paragraphs, chapters, etc) are so tight. It makes for such a quick read (which for me, is so damn important). It makes things like "The List", which could be tiresome in the hands of someone less skilled, interesting and alive.

The prose is sharp and smart and while the book has some dark moments, it felt, at least for me, like an upbeat read because of the pace and word choice.

The story is certainly great and I don't want to gloss over that. And when it was over I was left wanting more.

It's why I reached out to him a year ago and why I'm so excited to be working with him going forward.

Cheers
M

Guys,

Great discussion. Thanks to all who participated and a special thanks to Michael for leading it.

I finally got to meet Michael in D.C. earlier this month, and he's a goddamn treat to be around. I'll be reading with him as well as a couple other Culties this Friday and Saturday. Other misadventures should also ensue.

Feel free to keep the discussion going. After this week is over and things settle down a bit, I might actually pop in and post a couple of responses.

Thanks,
-BT

You should post some stuff in here B

Just finished the book, and really like it. Although Aidin was completely unsympathetic, I found myself empathizing with him a lot, partially because I have been subject to a lot of therapy.

The twist really got me at the end. It would have been nice to have another 80 pages or so about Aidin's new job. The most interesting part to me was Aidin's relationship. The way Dana would have him experience the things he could no longer feel through his other senses.

Yeah - I really wish I could have learned more about Aidin's new job too. But maybe Brandon will write a sequel.

He'll be back.

Just bought the book for the Kindle after reading through this a little. Trying not to get too ahead by reading any spoilers but I am very intrigued. Soon as I finish another Palahniuck novel and get through the May book I will start up on this one. I like to see the writers work shop producing such success like this, gives me hope

Okay, so this is kind of looking like a deserted playground -Anyone wanna play? I'd apologize for showing up to the game late, but from everything I've read so far, conversations can continue beyond the selected months sometimes?

I also read where everyone was debating if Aidin is a douche or not -But what about Dr. Paradies? Since we just had Mother's Day -what does everyone (or anyone) think about Her?

Oh that's an interesting question. Because I pretty much hated her at the end of the book.

And we can add to these threads whenever you guys want!

Right! (And SPOILER Alert for anyone who hasn’t read it yet).

You think she’s doing this all for his own good –a last desperate act to save her son. Not that far off from the thinking behind the elaborate, grand scheme that Leonardo DiCaprio’s character faces in the Shutter Island movie. But when you find out exactly How Aidin lost his ability to feel, and then the choice he’s given once all is revealed, and how she’s worked to control him, I mean you have to ask what kind of mother she truly is.

Because if she truly knew everything “about him,” or had him Figured Out enough to conduct any kind of therapy, then she had to be Aware of him the whole time while he was becoming the douche that he is at the beginning of the story, meaning she wasn’t as “distant” as Aidin originally thought.

So in that regard, she let Aidin become the person that he is at the beginning of the story, and then again, she lets him become the person he chooses to be at the end. She’s wicked in my eyes –extremely disconnected or out of touch herself, you know?

I like that you put waaaaay more though into this than most people.

I never thought about the fact that she was supposedly doing this for Aidin's own good because of the direction his life was going. But in actuality, she let his life go in that direction until he was a total douche-bag.

Agree -if he had access to money, clubs, drugs and women -she could've easily put a stop to it all by cutting him off or just work to end his behavior in a more conventional way. The excuse that she was wrapped up in a career or distant from her son doesn't hold when you find out in therapy that she's actually Very aware of him, who he is and the way he thinks or responds to things. She had to have been keeping an eye on him, therefore watched him become the "total douche-bag" as you so accurately put it -ahaha. Turns out, SHE"S The Douche! ahahaha

I think she gave Aidin the choice for her own relief. She can say she gave him a choice, but knowing him, did she really?

Good point -I think I agree because she had a hand in the "experiment" when all's said and done. There was actual progress on his end, too -he starts to see outside of himself, so I mean can you imagine getting Better, so to speak, only to realize that the "mother and father" you let down don't actually "exist?"

It's like doing drugs and doing nothing while breaking the hearts of your mother and father, only to improve thinking they'll be proud, and then realizing, they were dicks to begin with and any disappointment you've caused is nothing compared to the shit they're actually doing back. Trippy emotional stuff if you dwell on the idea of it all.

So I said that I would come in and address a few things. I’ll start with the issue of whether or not Aidin is a sympathetic character. Actually, I guess the real question I should be answering is whether it was my intention for him to be viewed that way.

The short answer: mostly not.

When I started OOT, it began under the premise of doing an origin story. This can be mistaken for the coming-of-age: the transition from childhood to adulthood. Even at 24, Aidin, I feel, is the sort of character that refuses to grow up, and in that sense, I can see how some people would label the book that way. An origin, however, is how a character assumes power and/or becomes a hero or villain, and this is more along the lines of how I feel the book operates: you’re following this guy as he learns to use this ability/disability to his advantage (exploiting it at times), and if you’ve read through it and gotten to the end, I think you can figure out which path he’s ultimately going down.

So no, you’re not really supposed to feel sympathy for the guy. He’s quite a terrible human being actually, but there are, of course, those moments in which you have to show a few redeeming qualities. The bad guy that is all bad quickly becomes uninteresting. It’s things like hope and redemption that keep a reader going, even if that hope is false hope.

Okay so let me ask you This: You responded with "He'll be back" to an earlier post, and now you're talking about OOT as an Origin Story -so is there a definite sequel in the works?

Minor spoiler alert:

If so, I've heard Bourne comparisons, but I don't think so -Jason Bourne is someone constantly struggling to find a way out of his situation, whereas Aidin seems to be embracing who he is and running with it -he's more like an Asset than a Bourne, no?

It's always been the plan to do something more with this guy. He's in the project I'm working on now.

I rather enjoyed the Jason Bourne meets Earl Hickey comparison but I forgot who said it.

Sounds promising -he's fun to read about.

You'll have to forgive the randomness, but someone posted in the Out of Touch: From Writer to Author thread and I got to thinking about the book -So Aidin will be seen again in an upcoming project, but what about Dana?

If the opportunity presents itself, then yes.