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Title: What a Carve Up!
Author: Jonathan Coe
Narrator: Alex Jennings
Format: Abridged
Length: 3 hrs and 51 mins
Language: English
Release date: 07-01-05
Publisher: Penguin Books Ltd
Genres: Fiction, Contemporary
Publisher's Summary:
In fact the Winshaw family are getting richer and crueller by the day. But once Jonathan Coe's eccentric narrator Michael Owen uncovers their trail of greed, corruption, and immoral doings throughout the '80s, the time seems ripe for their comeuppance.
Critic Reviews:
"A riveting social satire on the chattering and all powerful upper classes." (Time Out)
Members Reviews:
Almost great...
I read this book because The Times said it was his best work to date (in a review of his latest book), so I thought I'd give Coe a try.
It's a very unusual book...funny in parts, very satirical throughout, tilting at the values of 1980s/1990s UK right-wing values.
Story-wise, it's a series of short stores about each member of an extended well-to-do family that's involved in shady dealings in every industry from food to politics to arms dealing.
Coe is overly focused on coincidences and having all of the characters come together in a meaningful way so that so many events are bent and twisted too far to allow these coincidences to happen. I found myself engrossed in a storyline only to groan when a character from a previous chapter made an unlikely appearance.
The title of the book is also brought in repeatedly in such a heavy-handed way that it appears the author was "forcing" it to fit into various scenes. The title is a movie as well as parts of conversations and the grand finale of the book.
The writing style is very good and engaging. But, unless you're looking for a good satire, there are funnier books to read.
Good writing but annoying
This novel alternates between being impressive and irritating, Do publishers have editors these days? This book could have been made much better by cutting out the page long digs at long dead British Conservative governments, and throwing out most of the improbable coincidences. The writing is generally very good.
"It is the wretchedness of being rich that you have to live with rich people" -LP Smith
This novel is just brilliant & VERY, VERY funny.
I found about it on the blog written by the BBCs' Adam Curtis.....surely one of the most interesting documentary makers & bloggers in the world at the moment.
[...]
You can see where he got some of the broader ideas for his documentary series "All watched over by machines of loving grace".
Is is a fictional history of a family of hypocritical greedy & nasty ideologues - the sort of people who did Thatchers bidding for her & who preach the virtues of "self-sufficency & working hard" - well not for themselves of course?!
The sort of traits we see from our current greedy, lazy & bloated ruling classes of narcisists. (OR is that the 1% these days?)
A novel that should be read by all.
Five Stars
A hard to find and very excellent satire!
Absorbing, evocative, and so very amusing
This is an excellent work of contemporary British "fiction". The pace and tone of the story gather momentum as the tale unfolds, and there are moments of pure comedic genius. Highly recommended.
