THE SUICIDE COLLECTORS by David Oppegaard

A review. Wow, a real review. It has been a while SMR fans. My last review was A LITTLE HALLOWEEN TALE by SQT on 10/26/2008, which seem impossibly long ago.

I had thought that in November I’d switch gears and write a novel, playing along with the NaNoWriMo folks. However, I landed a new job after completing my MFA; I’m still swamped with lesson planning, grading, and trying to keep one day a head of my students. NaNoWriMo, next year (but I hope to have written one before November 2009)!

But even with all this personal-life upheaval, I had to read Oppegaard’s. It is his first published novel. He is the hardest working writer that I know. He completely deserves the two-book deal that he landed with St. Martin’s Press. Before, or perhaps after you have read my review, you might also want to check out my October Interview with David Oppegaard, author of The Suicide Collectors.

I didn’t really know what to expect from Oppegaard’s first novel. Having had classes with him where he read short excerpts of strange laugh-out-loud comedic works in progress, I found myself unprepared for the serious and gloomy novel that is The Suicide Collectors. There is humor in the novel. When the laughs arrive like Monarch Butterflies against the ever-gray backdrop of mass-suicide, they lift and flutter by all too quickly.

Having recently finished the novel and attended his celebratory publication reading (if you missed it, the next local one is 2/23/09 - Edina Community Library), I’m sure that this novel will achieve cult status. Perhaps not today or next year, but when the paperback rights are sold, and Marvel offers to turn it into a serial comic book, that is when you know something has taken hold of the readers, like the Source (in the book) that calls out to humanity to end their suffering, by taking their lives, so too will this book speak to masses. Norman is a hero for many reasons, but the reason that will stick with me was his tenacious wish to find answers, to think critically, and stand a lone against the tide.

Norman is a guy that I can like. He is resourceful and handy. He is stubborn. Above all, however, I relate to his indifference towards humanity (one of the reasons that he is the perfect hero for this novel). To me this attitude was summed up in the last few pages when he is forced to relive the moment when his wife chose to end her life. To paraphrase, he compared himself with his wife. She was out going and the phone rang off the hook all day, friends and family seeking her opinion and help. While he hand few if any friends, acquaintances really, neighbors, that he did not see very often. So, when the people started to kill themselves in waves, he was more concerned about how their absence would impact his wife, fewer people, fewer interactions; these were things Norman did not need.

However, and this how you know that the story is successful, Norman changes, but it happens so slowly that it takes you by surprise. He has come to desire human companionship. He loved his wife and needed her, missed her, but the bonds that he forms with Zero, a smart and witty pre-teen, and Pops, Norman neighbor, as they travel across the country in search of a cure to the Despair, end up not only saving him from stagnation but give him a reason to fight back.

The book was amazing. It is a must read for anyone who enjoys literature with an apocalyptic flavor.

Oppegaard, David. The Suicide Collectors. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 2008