I'll start with the few things I enjoyed about this book. It's important to know that Clemson Univ. freshman are required to read this book, so I got through it in two days, not because I couldn't put it down but because it was that easy to read. I'm majoring in Physics and my father is an engineer so BY FAR the dry, sarcastic engineer jokes were the best part! They were hilarious and absolutely spot on! So props to Barry for those. The other thing I enjoyed was the idea of the book. For our modern age I thought it was a brilliant idea. I looked at as a modern twist on Frankenstein. Unfortunately, the brilliant idea was not so brilliantly executed. The major problem with this book was there was no sense of self. It seemed that Barry wanted to write a sci-fi but kept it within the normal laws of modern society. The Better Future company and all the people involved in the story are in their own little world, but not in a good way. From the way it's described, Better Future is a widely known and accepted company. How in the world can any of this story take place without intervention from outside society and government? HE FREAKING KILLS A MAN AND NOTHING!!! Second, every single one of the characters are static. Even with the main character there is no character development. And Lola is apparently a cat with 9 lives. How many times does she come near death and walks away perfectly fine?Speaking of cats, what the hell was up with the cats at the lab? Were they actual cats walking around and acting like assistants? Were they assistants turned into cats? It was like something out of Doctor Who and the Cat Nurses.The worst part? The ending. Never mind the horrid comic book fight scene that seemed to drag on forever, but just when I felt that the book was reaching the climax... it ends. Sure, there's an epilogue, but that didn't make it any better. In fact, it probably made it worse. In the epilogue, I was begging for the main character to learn a lesson (specifically the "be careful what you wish for" one). I was hoping that Lola would walk in the room, he would realize that he couldn't touch her, and therefore properly love her, and the words "Please kill me" would have appeared on the screen. I would have have walked away with at least a little bit of respect left for the story... But he doesn't. In fact, he is absolutely smitten with what has happened to him. Therefore, NO ONE HAS LEARNED ANYTHING! Absolutely no consequence was paid by the story. Even worse, the writing at the end and through the epilogue just gave out. It was as if Barry said, "Good enough. I'm done." Like he just got lazy, threw something down, and called it an ending. Essentially, Machine Man is a Frankenstein, 1984 wanna be. 'Machine Man' is clearly a Max Barry work. It's quirky, it's introspective, and it goes entirely off the rails every now and again.The story centers around a man who decides that his body is okay, but he can do a lot better. Part of this work feels like a parable about the evils of cosmetic surgery and artificial enhancement pushed to the limits. The other part is a love story from an odd bent that you can't help but love.This is not, unfortunately, Barry's strongest work (which is perhaps why it only made it to hardcover as a book club edition.) It was a serial work that, perhaps, was never meant to be enjoyed as a whole on an idle Sunday.All in all, it made me consider a few things about life around me, and those who live it. Still - for my money - Jennifer Government remains the pinnacle of his literary career.
What do You think about Machine Man (2009)?
I finished this book in two days. It was smart, funny, satiric, sarcastic, and original.
—kirti
