371 pages
English language
Published Jan. 5, 1996 by ReganBooks.
Microserfs is an epistolary novel by Douglas Coupland. It first appeared in short story form as the cover article for the January 1994 issue of Wired magazine and was subsequently expanded to full novel length. Set in the early 1990s, it captures the state of the technology industry before Windows 95, and anticipates the dot-com bubble of the late 1990s. The novel is presented in the form of diary entries maintained on a PowerBook by the narrator, Daniel. Because of this, as well as its formatting and usage of emoticons, this novel is similar to what emerged a decade later as the blog format.
Surprisingly, I hadn't got around to reading this book before. From the perspective of 2012, it feels a little dated, although still a good book. I suspect that if I'd read this in the 90s it would have had a lot more impact, and I'm a bit sorry I didn't. Coupland was ahead of his time, and it's impressive how relevant much of the book still is.
