Looking for new comic author sugggestions from you Brits.
- Thread starter raisindot
- Start date
Regarding China Mieville:
Good advice. I got The Kraken out of the library, and all I can say is that the story had better be good because his writing is driving me up the wall! I mean, who would write that a bunch of scientists/museum curators were shaing anecdotes of horripilation?? (It means goose bumps - I looked it up) And the main character is Virgil to his best friend's Dante. So that's alright then
Apart from the obvious "found this on wikipedia so I'll fit it in somewhere" references, the writing style seems overly simple at times. Ah well. The giant squid sounds good, so I'll stick with it.
Good advice. I got The Kraken out of the library, and all I can say is that the story had better be good because his writing is driving me up the wall! I mean, who would write that a bunch of scientists/museum curators were shaing anecdotes of horripilation?? (It means goose bumps - I looked it up) And the main character is Virgil to his best friend's Dante. So that's alright then
Apart from the obvious "found this on wikipedia so I'll fit it in somewhere" references, the writing style seems overly simple at times. Ah well. The giant squid sounds good, so I'll stick with it.
Who's Wee Dug said:
chris.ph said:
ive read peridisio street station by china mievielle and its definately not satire more like horror scifi
Just finished "Aberistwyth Mon Amore" Brilliant! Similar style as Jasper Fforde as it is set in an alternative history.
Aberistwyth is a dirty town full of organised crime(run by Druids), loose women(in Welsh national costume and stovepipe hats), Private eyes and homosidal Welsh teachers.
Film Noire meets seaside resort. Strange but clever!
May check it out it looks a fun read.
'Round Ireland With A Fridge' and 'Playing The Moldovans At Tennis' by Tony Hawks a pretty good fun, especially as they are true stories. I think they are being made into films as well. 
To keep my promise, here it is (sorry for the grammar faults...).
Enjoy!
P. Howard (aka Jenő Rejtő) – Dirty Fred, the captain
Chapter one
(Translated by michelanCello)
’Sir! I’ve come for my knife!’
’Where did you leave it?’
’In some sailor, I believe.’
’What kind of knife was it?’
’Steel. Strait blade, slightly curved. Haven’t you seen it around?’
’Wait a minute… let’s see… What was his stem like?’
’Pearly.’
’How many parts did it consist of?’
’It was made of only one part.’
’Than there’s no problem, sir! We’ve got the knife!’
’Where?’
’In my back.’
’Thank you…’
’You’re welcome… The barman told me, what a splendid knife I had in my back. A one-piece pearl rarity.’
’Please, turn around so I can pull it out…’
’Hold on! The barman told me to let the knife where it is until he returns with the doctor, otherwise I’ll bleed out. The barman knows what he’s talking about, because even doctors have been killed here. It’s an old restaurant.’
’But I’m in a hurry, please! And no one can know when a doctor arrives? I can’t go home in the night without a knife, can I?’
’The doctor lives nearby, and the innkeeper has gone for him on a tricycle. Who stabbes around sir, must bear the consequences’
’Ho! Just because someone stabs you doesn’t mean that you’re allowed to keep the knife. This is lynch-law! Thank God there’s still real law on Earth’
’I wasn’t referring to the law, but to medicne. The barman said, that the best prescription is not to touch the knife. It’s a medical order!’
’A doctor should take care of his own business, the knife if my instrument!’
’Hmm… tought question…’
’You know what? My heart isn’t from stone either, I’ll help you. I’ll pull my knife out of you, and I’ll put another one in it’s place. That’ll do untill the ambulance arrives.’
’All right. But the knife shouldn’t be smaller, so that it bars the wound completely, because health is more important than anything else, and a prescription is a prescription, nothin’a do about that.’
’Don’t you worry a second. I’ll put a big kitchen knife in the wound.’
’That’s all right, then.’
’Turn… around…hopp! Like this…’
’Now put the other one in it!... Quick!’
’This one here, on the shelf’ll do, althought it’s only got a wooden stem.’
’Is it in it?’
’Bugger!... Your wound is hardly bleeding at all. The blade’s stopped right here, between the cartilages… What the hell, it’s blade’s chipped!’
’You should have stabbed it into the flesh, you probie!’
’Wait! I’ll put a wet shawl on it… The sweather claps it pretty well…’
’Please believe me finally that it needs a knife! The innkeeper knows it. People getting killed is a daily routine here. Put the knife in it! Why does that bother you?’
’I’m no good at it. I take responsability for stabbing, but not for opreations. Ask some other sailor to do it. They’ll come by any minute.’
’Good of you to remind me! Sir! You’ve knocked down twelve of my men!’
’One got hit by a liqueur-bearer, that’s not my fault.’
’He was the first stoker!’
’How should a liqueur-bearer possibly know that?’
’And there lies the ship-waiter. How can I find another ship-waiter at this time of the day? The Honolulo Star is departing tomorrow, and weve neiter a stoker, nor a waiter, because you knocked them out!’
’I was right by doing so. They threw a jug of water at me, and this kind of behavior offends me.’
’Neither of them threw that jug at you. They’re innocent.’
’Then who was it?’
’Me.’
’You’re lucky, that you’re at your in mortal agony, otherwise I’d hit you on the head… Good day!’
’Wait!’
’I have no time. I’m in a hurry.’
’Please have a look, if the wound needs a knife. Such stabs can’t be neglected. It could be bleeding in the inside.’
’No one could possibly have stabbed you from that direction. Just wait for the doctor, he’ll help you, if he can. If not, than rest in peace.’
’Thank you…’
’I’m sorry you enlisted such a weak crew…’
’Hey! Young man! I’ll escort you. I have a good idea you can earn money with…’
’All right.’
’Wait! Hey, barman! If the innkeeper comes back, tell him I went for a little walk. He shouldn’t be worried, if it gets worse, I’ll put a knife int he wound. I’ll take care… Now, come on!’
Enjoy!
P. Howard (aka Jenő Rejtő) – Dirty Fred, the captain
Chapter one
(Translated by michelanCello)
’Sir! I’ve come for my knife!’
’Where did you leave it?’
’In some sailor, I believe.’
’What kind of knife was it?’
’Steel. Strait blade, slightly curved. Haven’t you seen it around?’
’Wait a minute… let’s see… What was his stem like?’
’Pearly.’
’How many parts did it consist of?’
’It was made of only one part.’
’Than there’s no problem, sir! We’ve got the knife!’
’Where?’
’In my back.’
’Thank you…’
’You’re welcome… The barman told me, what a splendid knife I had in my back. A one-piece pearl rarity.’
’Please, turn around so I can pull it out…’
’Hold on! The barman told me to let the knife where it is until he returns with the doctor, otherwise I’ll bleed out. The barman knows what he’s talking about, because even doctors have been killed here. It’s an old restaurant.’
’But I’m in a hurry, please! And no one can know when a doctor arrives? I can’t go home in the night without a knife, can I?’
’The doctor lives nearby, and the innkeeper has gone for him on a tricycle. Who stabbes around sir, must bear the consequences’
’Ho! Just because someone stabs you doesn’t mean that you’re allowed to keep the knife. This is lynch-law! Thank God there’s still real law on Earth’
’I wasn’t referring to the law, but to medicne. The barman said, that the best prescription is not to touch the knife. It’s a medical order!’
’A doctor should take care of his own business, the knife if my instrument!’
’Hmm… tought question…’
’You know what? My heart isn’t from stone either, I’ll help you. I’ll pull my knife out of you, and I’ll put another one in it’s place. That’ll do untill the ambulance arrives.’
’All right. But the knife shouldn’t be smaller, so that it bars the wound completely, because health is more important than anything else, and a prescription is a prescription, nothin’a do about that.’
’Don’t you worry a second. I’ll put a big kitchen knife in the wound.’
’That’s all right, then.’
’Turn… around…hopp! Like this…’
’Now put the other one in it!... Quick!’
’This one here, on the shelf’ll do, althought it’s only got a wooden stem.’
’Is it in it?’
’Bugger!... Your wound is hardly bleeding at all. The blade’s stopped right here, between the cartilages… What the hell, it’s blade’s chipped!’
’You should have stabbed it into the flesh, you probie!’
’Wait! I’ll put a wet shawl on it… The sweather claps it pretty well…’
’Please believe me finally that it needs a knife! The innkeeper knows it. People getting killed is a daily routine here. Put the knife in it! Why does that bother you?’
’I’m no good at it. I take responsability for stabbing, but not for opreations. Ask some other sailor to do it. They’ll come by any minute.’
’Good of you to remind me! Sir! You’ve knocked down twelve of my men!’
’One got hit by a liqueur-bearer, that’s not my fault.’
’He was the first stoker!’
’How should a liqueur-bearer possibly know that?’
’And there lies the ship-waiter. How can I find another ship-waiter at this time of the day? The Honolulo Star is departing tomorrow, and weve neiter a stoker, nor a waiter, because you knocked them out!’
’I was right by doing so. They threw a jug of water at me, and this kind of behavior offends me.’
’Neither of them threw that jug at you. They’re innocent.’
’Then who was it?’
’Me.’
’You’re lucky, that you’re at your in mortal agony, otherwise I’d hit you on the head… Good day!’
’Wait!’
’I have no time. I’m in a hurry.’
’Please have a look, if the wound needs a knife. Such stabs can’t be neglected. It could be bleeding in the inside.’
’No one could possibly have stabbed you from that direction. Just wait for the doctor, he’ll help you, if he can. If not, than rest in peace.’
’Thank you…’
’I’m sorry you enlisted such a weak crew…’
’Hey! Young man! I’ll escort you. I have a good idea you can earn money with…’
’All right.’
’Wait! Hey, barman! If the innkeeper comes back, tell him I went for a little walk. He shouldn’t be worried, if it gets worse, I’ll put a knife int he wound. I’ll take care… Now, come on!’
Well, thanks to your suggestions, I went to my library, searched for just about all the authors you recommended, and found only two books from that whole list, which I borrowed.
"Angel in the House," Mike Ripley. I know is late in the series, but what can you do? Just started it. Reminds a bit of Nick Hornsby. Taking quite awhile to get the plot going.
"The Toyminator," Robert Rankin. I know this is a sequel, but, again, what can you do? I'm enjoying this as an "exercise bike" reader. I don't know how long Rankin has been around, but here he seems to be borrowing riffs from EVERYONE--Adams, Fforde, Pterry, Pixar, Milne, "Roger Rabbit," and more. Like Fforde, he tries a bit too hard to be clever, but, unlike Fforde, he gets away with it because he's a better joke teller.
I've a bunch of other Rankins on loan order from other libraries.
What kills me is that NONE of them have any of the Tom Sharpe books that have produced in the past decade. Neither do any U.S. stores. I'm probably going to have to shell out through Amazon.ca for them.
J-I-B
"Angel in the House," Mike Ripley. I know is late in the series, but what can you do? Just started it. Reminds a bit of Nick Hornsby. Taking quite awhile to get the plot going.
"The Toyminator," Robert Rankin. I know this is a sequel, but, again, what can you do? I'm enjoying this as an "exercise bike" reader. I don't know how long Rankin has been around, but here he seems to be borrowing riffs from EVERYONE--Adams, Fforde, Pterry, Pixar, Milne, "Roger Rabbit," and more. Like Fforde, he tries a bit too hard to be clever, but, unlike Fforde, he gets away with it because he's a better joke teller.
I've a bunch of other Rankins on loan order from other libraries.
What kills me is that NONE of them have any of the Tom Sharpe books that have produced in the past decade. Neither do any U.S. stores. I'm probably going to have to shell out through Amazon.ca for them.
J-I-B
poohcarrot said:
Have there been any Tom Sharpe books produced in the last decade?
I thought they were all 1980s-ish.
I thought they were all 1980s-ish.
Bibliography
Porterhouse Blue Series
Porterhouse Blue (1974)
Grantchester Grind (1995)
Wilt Series
Wilt (1976)
The Wilt Alternative (1979)
Wilt On High (1984)
Wilt in Nowhere (2004)
Wilt in Triplicate (omnibus) (1996)
The Wilt Inheritance (2010, forthcoming)
Other Novels
Riotous Assembly (1971)
Indecent Exposure (1973)
Blott On the Landscape (1975)
The Great Pursuit (1977)
The Throwback (1978)
Ancestral Vices (1980)
Vintage Stuff (1982)
The Midden (1996)
The Gropes (2009)
Collections
Selected Works (1986)
Tom Sharpe Library Pack (2001)
Actually you may find that Fforde copied the Rankin chappie particually in style from "The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse" allegedly and used a particular phrase I have never seen anyone else use and this was in Fforde's first published book 2001 whereas Rankin was published in 1981 with "The Antipope" 1st in the Brentford triogly.
Just got "Chocolate Bunnies" on loan from another library and you're right--it came out in 2002. When did Fforde's first book come out? Or, more specifically, when did his first Nursery Series book come out? That series, more than the Thursday Next series, is far more derivative of Rankin's style.
Then again, Fforde is just about the most derivative writer out there. His trajectory of quality is the total reverse of PTerry's. With "The Eyre Affair" he started off derivative and strong, and each book has gotten progressive worse until today they're hardly readable at all.
J-I-B
Then again, Fforde is just about the most derivative writer out there. His trajectory of quality is the total reverse of PTerry's. With "The Eyre Affair" he started off derivative and strong, and each book has gotten progressive worse until today they're hardly readable at all.
J-I-B
Penfold said:
'Round Ireland With A Fridge' and 'Playing The Moldovans At Tennis' by Tony Hawks a pretty good fun, especially as they are true stories. I think they are being made into films as well.
On the fiction front, I like Ben Elton, also Christopher Brookmyre, my favourites being 'All Fun and Games Until Somebody Loses an Eye' and 'One Fine Day in the Middle of the Night'. Nick Hornby is good and I particularly enjoyed his latest, 'Juliet, Naked'.
If you're familiar with Wodehouse, Waugh and other classic British novelists, can I presume you've read 'Cold Comfort Farm' by Stella Gibbons and 'I Capture the Castle' by Dodie Smith? Both are highly recommended.
"The City of Dreaming Books" by Walter Moers, with illustrations by the author. All of Moers' books take place in the crazy world of Zamonia, which makes the discworld look absolutely normal in comparison. This is his masterpiece though, in my opinion. I read the German original; it must have been quite difficult to translate it.
"Memoirs Found in a Bathtub" by Stanslaw Lem. Lem is usually tagged as sci-fi, but the tag does not quite fit him. One thing is for sure though: Many of Lem's book are hilarious, and this one is no exception. The humor here is very Kafkaesque though; The story idea is quite simple: A man is sent out on a mission to find his mission, but the more he looks for it the less he understands and the more absurd everything becomes. The book certainly is funny, but in a very dark way. Lem's books always make me regret I can't read Polish; there must be so much which gets lost in translation.
"Memoirs Found in a Bathtub" by Stanslaw Lem. Lem is usually tagged as sci-fi, but the tag does not quite fit him. One thing is for sure though: Many of Lem's book are hilarious, and this one is no exception. The humor here is very Kafkaesque though; The story idea is quite simple: A man is sent out on a mission to find his mission, but the more he looks for it the less he understands and the more absurd everything becomes. The book certainly is funny, but in a very dark way. Lem's books always make me regret I can't read Polish; there must be so much which gets lost in translation.
