AngusBenton said:
If I'm a bit of a prick and enjoy reading cynical and somewhat gritty novels, which Julian Barnes should I start with? Is he going to annoy me? I am sometimes annoyed by Hornby (a self admitted lightweight - who still can be pretty damn funny.)
Thoughts?
I think Barnes has the dry British wit down pat. A warning though, his stuff can be a little pretentious (so there is the possibility of annoyance). But I’m still a fan. I’ll give you the rundown of my three faves:
History of the World in 10.5 Chapters: This is a collection of short stories (some better than others) on a variety of some-what connected subjects. Here’s a snipet from a review:
Add a dash of art history, a good bit of philosophy, an offbeat vision of the Hereafter, plus Barnes's blend of storytelling skills and high intelligence, and the combination must be the thinking person's novel of the season. Remember, some of the stories are better/more accessible than others.
Talking it Over/Love, Etc.: Two books (Love, Etc. takes place 10 years later) A look at the progression of the relationship between three people (ie man and woman get married, best friend realizes at the wedding he is in love with woman, makes up stories to hide his obsession, etc etc) from each of their individual perspectives. He did a great job of really nailing the individual personalities. The character Oliver is a bit of a fop, but he’s just written so well you love him anyway.
England England: My personal fave. It’s a rather strange one, and one of his more cynical works. Basically the premise (more or less)is what happens when you take away a peoples’ culture? Again, I don’t have time to do the description justice (at work), so here’s a snippet from Amazon:
Imagine being able to visit England--all of England--in a single weekend. Big Ben, the Houses of Parliament, Stonehenge and Hadrian's Wall, Harrods, Manchester United Football Club, the Tower of London, and even the Royal Family all within easy distance of the each other, accessible, and, best of all, each one living up to an idealized version of itself. This fantasy Britain is the very real (and some would say very cynical) vision of Sir Jack Pitman, a monumentally egomaniacal mogul with a more than passing resemblance to modern-day buccaneers Sir Rupert Murdoch or Robert Maxwell: "'We are not talking theme park,' he began. 'We are not talking heritage centre. We are not talking Disneyland, World's Fair, Festival of Britain, Legoland or Parc Asterix.'" No indeed; Sir Jack proposes nothing less than to offer "the thing itself," a re-creation of everything that adds up to England in the hearts and minds of tourists looking for an "authentic" experience. In the course of constructing this mad package-tour dystopia, Julian Barnes has a terrific time skewering postmodernism, the British, the press, the government, celebrity, and big business. At the same time his very funny novel offers a provocative meditation on the nature of identity, both individual and national, as the lines between the replica and the thing itself begin to blur.
That’s a lot, I know. Sorry for all the quotes, etc. But I hope they are helpful. Oh, his newest – Lemon Table – is good (short stories) and Flaubert’s parrot is brilliant.
cheers
