The End as I Know It: A Novel of Millennial Anxiety

Alfred Hitchcock once described the difference between shock and suspense as having a bomb suddenly go off without the viewer knowing its existence first (shock) to revealing the bomb to the viewer pre-explosion (suspense). Inherent in Mr. Shay's hilarious novel is the bomb (the Year 2000's impending digital doom) that we all know never detonated. So how can readers be engaged when the know the ultimate result is a fizzle that barely caused a burp in our daily lives? The secret to ths book's success is in Mr. Shay's timeless characters and situations. Replace the year 2000 with Avian Flu, Global Warming, the threat of the Cold War, the Atom Bomb, or any End of the World scenario that has plagued us for generations - the threat is irrelevant. All that matters is Randall, our narrator, and his Gen-X, Gen-Y, Gen-whatever struggle to make something of his life. He battles clueless relatives and annoyed friends in his pursuit to "save" them from catastrophe. Yet he skewers other conspiracists who, to him, take their beliefs too far. In other words, to bastardize Groucho Marx, he doesn't want to belong to the only club that will actually have him as a member. So we root for Randall as he watches the ticking clock and wrestles with his fears. That he also plays absurd children's songs at elementary schools with the help of some double-entendre named puppets adds to our pathos, and the novel's ample humour. Mr. Shay gives us a narrator we can't trust, probably wouldn't befriend, and at times want to strangle for chucking away what's good in his life. But then, we all have Y2Ks to worry about, while others stare in wonder at our insistent ignorance to ignore the simple truths they all can see. Hitchcock would have been proud at the trick here - that the supposed purpose for the book, the time bomb, is not nearly as important as the mirror the author holds up for us to observe. Warts and all, we have a blast doing it.

A very talented writer and a really good book. Shay has captured with great empathy and specificity a snapshot into these post-millenium modern times. This book is funny and filled with lovingly drawn characters--including the narrator/puppetier.

Kevin Shay is an excellent writer. Which is all the more important given the subject matter; we all know, of course, that the world didn't end in Y2K. Add to that the protagonist being a puppeteer. Shay is witty and creative and even manages to create some tension along the way. This book is an easy read and very easy to enjoy.

I enjoyed reading this book. Through the eyes of protagonist, Randall, Kevin Shay amuses with tales of contemporary life that resonate. An often slow reader, I finished ... The End ... in a couple of days.