ian Posted May 10, 2011 Share Posted May 10, 2011 OK, I admit it. I went into the library and picked up this book based solely on the title. It must be the first time I have ever done that (with a book anyway - I once brought a CD based on the title of track 1) and based on the result, it'll be the last time. I don't think I have the words to adequatly describe how much I disliked this book. It tells the story of Benton Kirby, who has found himself with two girlfriends and what happens to him as a result of trying to keep one from the other. The first half of the book is especially bad, as it leaps from one scene to another. In fact the first half is less a book but a collection of seperate paragraphs. Occasionally, one of these is funny, but it is too few and far between. I couldn't get into the main character, as he is basically a ba*****d with no redeeming qualities (which I realise is the point). Nick Hornby does this type of thing MUCH better. The second half of the book does settle down a bit, and begin telling a story in a more coherent, structured way, and there are glimmers of good writing here, which is why I think it annoys me so much; this isn't bad writing so much as lazy writing. But by then I'd given up. It was only through sheer bloody-minedness that I finished the book at all. The funny title now begins to look like a cynical marketing ploy. Is is just me? Am I just a miserable old git, or has someone else read this and agrees with me thanks for listening! Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kylie Posted May 10, 2011 Share Posted May 10, 2011 One to avoid then! Thanks for the warning. There has definitely been an increase in books with cutesy titles lately - I think they're a marketing gimmick too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian Posted May 10, 2011 Author Share Posted May 10, 2011 Well it certainly worked on me! Fortunately a library find rather than a bookshop find. Then again, if I was buying I would have read the first page, which would have put me off buying it anyway. Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
poppy Posted May 10, 2011 Share Posted May 10, 2011 What would be even more annoying is if there was absolutely no reference to a hedgehog whatsoever. Has the title got any relevance to the story? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ian Posted May 11, 2011 Author Share Posted May 11, 2011 It sounds like a child book with pics I think I would have enjoyed it more if it was! What would be even more annoying is if there was absolutely no reference to a hedgehog whatsoever. Has the title got any relevance to the story? There is, right at the end. I'd pretty much given up by then Ian Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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