Book 17 - E Squared by Matt Beaumont

For those of you who don't know, Matt Beaumont is a satirical British writer. A few years back he wrote e - a novel told through email about the crazy day to day life in a London ad agency. It was pretty ridiculous and pretty amazing.

Unbeknownst to me, Matt has been plugging away on a follow up effort - e Squared - that came out earlier this year. Luckily, I have friends and sometimes they alert me to things I should already know about! I borrowed the book from said friend and, as was expected, sped through it.

Both e and e Squared are very enjoyable, quick reads. The characters are all ridiculous (though some more than others) and though some of the plot points are obviously constructed for humour only, Matt Beaumont does a great job of capturing the endless monotony that some of use feel in our jobs and the disgust that can so easily overtake you when you hate the people around you (I've heard). The actual things that happen are not familiar but the emotions are, the connections (or aversion to connect) are, the stereotypical coworker tropes are. We've all had a boss who was utterly ineffective without us (if you haven't, just be glad) and we've all see the coworker who manages to skate by without actually working.

e and e Squared are worth a read regardless of where you work and what you do. They're entertaining and silly. It's a nice break from the heavy literature (no offense Matt). The fact that it's written in email and text message and instant message makes it that much more referential and accessible. "Hey, I send email everyday, I can relate to this!" Not always true, but it helps.

Read reviews of e Squared:

• 120 Units enjoys both e and it's sequel


• Duffbert hasn't read the first installment of Beaumont's satirical saga, but still enjoys the second book


• Read about the book in Matt Beaumont's own words in a silly interview at denofgeek - also NBC adaption?!?


• Aaaaand, another interview over at beatmagazine


• 'e Squared' - A book for everyone who loves or hates emails

Also, if you're a fan of Beaumont's books, why not follow his fictional ad agency Meerkat360 on Twitter? I do!

And check out the works of both Matt and Maria Beaumont (wife, also a novelist) and somebody named Jessie Jones (turns out she's made up) over at their website: www.letstalkaboutme.com.