Product Description

From one of Britain's leading young writers, 'Going Out' is a wickedly funny tale of friendship and a biting satire of modern times. A British Douglas Coupland. He wants to go out. She wants to stay in. For some reason, they are best friends. Luke and Julie are making a space suit. Along with their friends, Leanne, Charlotte David and Chantal, they are collecting silver foil, Wellington boots, a crash helmet and plastic piping. A camper van is waiting outside -- ready for a journey that might just change all their lives. Luke can't remember the last time he went outside. He is twenty-five and stuck in his bedroom where the world comes to him through TV, Internet and Julie's nightly visits. He suffers from XP, a mysterious allergic reaction to everything: sunlight, cats, the dust from moths' wings. Julie thinks that Luke's life is perfect. She lives with her Dad and works in the local pizza restaurant. The more she experiences of the world, the less she wants to go out. When an internet healer contacts Luke and claims that he can cure him, the two have to come face to face with their fears: they must go to Wales to meet the mysterious Wei. In a world of pop lyrics, pot noodles, retail parks and video games can dreams still come true? 'Going Out' is a wickedly funny story of hope, fears and friendship.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #275133 in Books
• Published on: 2003-04-07
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 368 pages

The Times
'GOING OUT is worth staying in for'.

Douglas Coupland
Going Out is wonderful. It hits all the right nails with just the right amount of force.

Rebbecca Ray, author of A CERTAIN AGE
'Scarlett Thomas once again defies classification.'Going Out' is a story which will remain with you long after you’ve come to its end.'

Customer Reviews

No question - Scarlett thomas is my new favourite author. Here's why....
To a hoary old bookworm like me, it's a beautiful feeling to pick up a book with no real prior knowledge, and be completely enamoured and enchanted as the last page is turned. It's an epiphany, a discovery, and almost like love.

My first experience with Scarlett Thomas was picking up 'The End of Mr. Y', which looked interesting enough, with its black-lined pages, recommendation by Philip Pullman, and the promise of philosophy, metaphysics, curses & supersitions, quantum physics, time-travel and sex (I mean, with promises like that, who could resist, right?), but when I finished the book, I was so impressed, amazed and enchanted, that I knew I must find more.

With "Going Out", however, while it may be a different subject, and an earlier work, I felt that Scarlett Thomas had written the book with me in mind. The locations, characters, and the situations that they find themselves in really struck a chord that I haven't felt in a long time. Maybe it is because in 2000, the year the book was set in, I was at roughly the same age as the characters. I live in South Essex, where the book was set, and know a lot of the locations (There is a pub called 'The Rising Sun' in Billericay, although I don't know if that's where Scarlett Thomas based her pub on...), and I could see various aspects of my own life, and the lives of my friends, reflected in the characters of the novel.

There is no doubt that Scarlett writes with a lot of heart. The plot may not be a 'Da Vinci Code' rollercoaster of thrills and excitement, but each character stands out so strongly that they were practically tangible. Luke, the main character, suffers with XP, a rare skin disease that causes a potentially fatal allergy if he is exposed to the sun. He is portrayed as having a slight American accent, and cannot read a story without having references from the TV to help him imagine scenarios. Everything outside his house, as far as he's concerned, looks like a Hollywood sit-com. Scarlett reinforces this several times in the book by displaying to the reader that Luke simply does not know any other lifestyle, and has no other point of reference.

Another thing that Scarlett Thomas does (and it is a great relief to say this), is to eschew the stereotype of the Essex Girl, and she does this vehemently. One of the lesser (but still important & relevant) characters, Chantal, is a Basildon girl who has won the lottery. - Chantal is shy, sweet, and caring. She has known poverty and embarassement, and is charming and likeable. (If she had been a brash outgoing promiscuous single mother, I probably would have put the book down), but it is a refreshing and perfect example of how Scarlett Thomas writes about characters for who they are, irrespective of whether the reader expects them to behave or speak in a certain way.

In short, a wonderful novel, with heavy & self-referencing nods to the Wizard of Oz, with real, believable and wonderul characters, a real dollop of humour, and a message that stays with the reader once the book is finished...

...I think I'm in love.

Going Out by Scarlett Thomas
This is a wonderfully original and entertaining read, with characters like people from the next universe along - almost real but more interesting. The sort of book you can read again and again and find something new to think about each time. Excellent.

Another Great Book from Scarlett Thomas
Although this was yet another fantastic book of Scarlett Thomas, something about it just doesn't reach the standards of Bright Young Things. Maybe it's the lack of activity that the book begins with, and the fact that the plot is quite predictable and the characters are similar to the ones in her other novels. Nevertheless, it was still captivating yet simple and I would reccommend it to anyone with a trace of intellect. - Grace