La historia se me hizo interesante, no creí que fuera a tomar el giro tan radical que tomó, pero aún así resulta entretenida, mucho, en todo el sentido de la palabra. Es la primera vez que leo a Tom Sharpe y no me resultó tan humorístico comparándolo por ejemplo con Wodehouse(al menos en este libro). No recurre tanto a la risa en sí sino a toda la situación en general viéndola con ironía y crítica social, mucha crítica social, que Wodehouse también la tiene, pero no la expresa de forma tan directa. Por cierto, a la mitad y parte del final llega a tener tintes de novela negra, en los que hay momentos muy buenos.Le pongo 3 estrellas porque sí, me gustó, pero a veces hablaba mucho de los abusos de los patrones capitalistas desde la mirada del hombre progresista de izquierda que le parece injusto lo que hacen, —yo me considero de izquierda—, pero esto ya es muy conocido, que sí, ese es uno de los argumentos de la historia, pero como digo me resultó un tanto repetitivo. Ahora, calificándola omitiendo lo anterior merecería 4 estrellas, porque en verdad es entretenida, te mantiene enganchado leyéndola conforme va pasando una cosa y otra.
A friend lent me this ages ago, and i've finally got round to reading it. You'll have it back soon Christiana!With Mrs Thatcher's death bringing back to my mind all things eighties, reading this book, released in 1980 took me back to that world. Militant Left-Wingers, Right-Wingers, Old Money, the class war, all those things which seemed to matter then but maybe not as much nowadays. It's a farce, a form i'm not too familiar with. There are no heroes, all those involved seem to be a combination of either stupid or nasty, and very few seem to me to have good intentions at all. I dread books with wacky covers, and "you will laugh at loud" testimonials on the back. To date, i've only laughed out loud at one book, one of the Reggie Perrin books as you ask, and that remains the case.It's not right for me to judge it 30 years on, i've not aged too well either; i'm sure it was funny when it was written, but what i most took from it was how much the country had changed. The past is also indeed a foreign country.
Do You like book Ancestral Vices (1997)?
This is the second time I've read this book. The first occasion was more than thirty years ago and has always sat in the back of mind as an enjoyable read. I was not disappointed the second time around.The story is beyond all reality but totally enjoyable and funny. The characters may be caricatures but that is what makes it so enjoyable. It is definitely black comedy and sure to be offensive to some, that is in part what the book pokes fun at.This was the first Tom Sharpe novel I ever read and because of it I have gone on to read nearly all his other books.
—Balthazar Lawson
My Uncle lent me this book. He's English and well mannered and loves a good giggle over fart jokes and fannies. His favorite movie is Ace Ventura. He pulled this off his shelf and handed it to me. "This is brilliant, but you need to love farce." I read 100 pages of it and didn't crack a smile. Am I not English enough? Some of the references were clearly cultural and over my head, but others even a well-read Brit my age probably wouldn't get. As other reviewers have pointed out, these jokes, and this book, didn't age well. Even the things I did understand weren't very funny to me. I can chuckle at the Three Stooges and Clue. And I've been to my share of farcical plays. There's something that clicks for me when I can see the action. In writing, farce falls flat. It feels too contrived. The last thing I read was the wheelchair destruction scene. When what I'm sure amounted to one of this book's crown jewels failed to amuse me, I knew I wouldn't make it to the end.
—Eric Bridges
