Nersesian’s The Fuck-Up is the child of a literary tradition of self-reflection with an almost narcissistic narrative.

The central character is perpetually down on his luck; getting dumped by his girlfriend, getting fired from his job, having his best friend commit suicide, losing his life savings in a gay-cinema scam, getting beat up by his married lover’s child, being accused of rape by a movie producers gold-digging girlfriend, and ending up living on the streets. He eventually finds his luck in the most unlikely of places.

Nersesian deals with all these happenings in a utilitarian style, with little scene or character description. Even so, the book has merit in it’s pace and fluidity, with a constantly downward spiralling plot trajectory dealt with with humour and lighheartedness when it’s due.

This may not be the greatest piece of modern literature but it’s sure worth a read, and due to the book’s spacious layout, not a very long read at that.