Player One by Douglas Coupland

From The Week of February 20, 2011

Though Player One is superficially about the consequences of reaching and then enduring the shock of Peak Oil, at the story's core is a fascinating conversation about the need for all humans to connect, to speak a mutual language, and to belong to something that matters.

In the very near future, the world changes forever when humanity reaches Peak Oil, the point at which the extraction of oil from the earth, thanks to both demand and scarcity, enters a phase of permanent decline. Because no effective alternative to fossil fuels has been found, the cost of oil rockets up from $100 to $400 in hours. Thanks to the law of supply and demand, it will never again decrease in value. During this eschatological event, four, random Canadians cross paths in an airport bar, bonding as they watch the world's economy dismantled. Karen, a middle-aged mom, has arranged to meet a date from the internet. But when he proves disappointing, she turns her interest upon Rick, the bartender of the lounge, a man who has placed all his faith for a new beginning in a personal wellness guru who has promised to meet him today, of all days. Luke, a preacher who recently lost his faith in god, has stolen thousands of dollars from his church's charity fund, but his nihilistic intentions are swayed when he meets Rachel, a beautiful genius who lacks even rudimentary social skills. As the hours pass, and the world's plight deepens, these four will share their stories and their desires and their needs as they struggle to survive the deaththrows of the civilization they once knew.

Mr. Coupland has put together a pleasingly philosophical novel which, while narratively driven by the apocalypse, concerns itself with themes of belief and communication. The former manifests in each character's need to have faith in someone or something that has the power to deliver them from their own failings. The latter makes itself felt through each character's attempt to communicate to someone, anyone, their need to belong, to be made whole. Mr. Coupland makes no bones of these themes; his characters openly proclaim their fears in outbursts of unrealistic dialogue. Nonetheless, it works precisely because this is a philosophical piece that draws its value from the articulation of human nature and human need, not from an exact reconstruction of reality. Wonderfully thoughtful, pleasingly succinct, and, for all its declarations, well-plotted. (4/5 Stars)