I've commented above that I didn't enjoy this book - and do not think comparisons with Pynchon are at all appropriate - but what I found really frustrating was not any of the language, but the syntax, for which I can see no underlying intellectual idea or literary conceit. I actually found myself cursing out loud as…

Discussed in the review section at length that I didn't think that the characterisation was at all strong - in fact thought that the entire novel was pretty average - but I haven't read any other Mieville before, so my question to those who have read all/more Mieville and have also already read this, is what would be…

@ Iron Coward - thanks for the comment. As I've probably indicated, all accounts seemed to suggest that Mieville is very talented (and got mad smarts) but this didn't do it for me at all. If this is his weakest, I'll try again (if this was average-to-good for him, I wouldn't bother).

That is a good way of summing it up - as mentioned, for me the metaphysics expanded and expanded until just about anything could happen, removing all sense of tension. It felt like someone riffing as much as creating. Why squids by the way? Was there a cult that worshipped the sperm whale? Who was top god? …

@stza - glad to hear you agree; I was starting to worry that too many months of management jargon and no time to read had stunted my ability to appreciate and understand great literature. It was reasonably entertaining, with some nice moments, not much more.

@ Squidbrains - thanks very much for your comments and I'll definitely not write off Mieville, but I do still struggle to see the deeper significance of the work and so would appreciate some examples. If the book is an investigation of materialism (philosophical basis rather than consumerist as you note) then how does…

Call me Unconvinced
I have only ever read one Mieville shortstory before (which I really enjoyed), some essays and intros by him (such as to the Modern Library's 'At the Mountains of Madness') and have had his novels recommended to me and so I picked up Kraken, particularly excited at the seeming apropos topic as I've…

To perhaps be unhelpful and go obvious with the Ellroy and also Pynchon's Inherent Vice (three quarters of the way through and it's bloody brilliant - no surprise).

In A Lonely Place
Does anyone else feel this film is hugely underrated?

I think the final factor is that respectively the down-home truthiness of country and the direct nature of rap provide a clarity of communication which exceeds rock music for detailing story centred around people and places. Most rock music tends to be far more oblique. This allows for narratives to be picked up by…

Kinda knew this would incite views strong for and against. To clarify, alt country is a horrible tag, as are just about every genre tag in any medium - they're reductive and insufficient and homogeonizing and decidedly short-hand; they're divisive and tribal and lead into all kinds of pointless discussion - so yes,…

That was pretty darn beautiful Snowman. (Genuine - no snark.)

Alt Country - perhaps an unpopular subject line
Hi Nathan - great article again - and Keith Whitley I am yet to get my ears around so much appreciated.

Maybe I should give it another chance - and perhaps I did a disservice by dissuading my girlfriend from reading it… I guess I couldn't quite get my head around what it was trying to do, and finding the central conceit none too original, I kept expecting it to suddenly reveal itself. As below, I do think that…

To counterbalance my extremely negative comments on The Book of Lost Things above, must post here that Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell is fantastic: well drawn, idiosyncratic, unlikeable yet undeniable heroes; a driving narrative equally comfortable taking detours to explore a fantastic world drawing from history and…

Not attempting to troll, but I also read a couple of positive reviews in the English press of TBLT, bought the book, and was hugely disappointed. So much so I felt almost a little angry at the reviewer (the establishment of reviewers and authors can be so incestuous in the national newspapers that on such occasions I…