gave up on this one - found it boring

Does money buy happiness? Among many of life’s big questions, that is one that Anthony Burgess seeks to answer.

Janet and Howard are a regular English couple, doing everyday English things, living in their council house salary by salary. Howard realises that his photographic memory could give them a wealthy lifestyle and he ends up winning a game show based on memorisation only. And with some crafty data gathering on horse races, he manages to multiply the sum 1000x ful, thus securing them the possibility to embark on a journey of treats and carefree expenses.

The plot takes place in the 60s, and definitely addresses things such as the TV culture, where the silver screen becomes the central piece in a household, the focal point around which the family gathers. Consumerism, advertisements, small town gossip all play a part in themes addressed. They are not criticised, rather approached comically and Burgess does an amazing job at keeping the story light hearted and fun, yet challenging the reader on the bigger questions when away from the material.

The story is told by Janet, Howard’s wife, a naive and simple woman without much education, who would be perfectly content with the state of things. I wondered throughout what he role was in Howard’s eyes, she seems more of a companion as a pet rather than a life partner. He lets herself be dragged, directed, pushed, because Howard takes care of her and loves her. He is definitely the one responsible for their future and their stance as a unit.

I have previously only read ‘A Clockwork Orange’ by Burgess and loved it, and i didn’t know how I would get on with his comical books which is the main bulk of his work. Terrific, just terrific. There is an exploration of morality, philosophy, every day life, and a really refreshing outlook provided by Janet. Her tone is playful, chilled out, and she just takes you on a whirlwind of adventure that you can’t help but smile with her. Don’t get me wrong, she is a strong woman, and you definitely get that insight into her too, but she isn’t bleak or serious as some people around her but genuinely aims to enjoy life.

Fantastic read, and one that cements Burgess as one of my favourite authors.

The first half of the novel is rollicking and humorous (in a sardonic way), but then begins to turn dark and ominous. The denouement is clever and fitting, and the tone lightens a bit by the end, but Burgess is never able to regain the feel of the earlier part of the book. Perhaps that change in tone is intentional and wholly appropriate because the naive protagonist and narrator has become enlightened and been changed forever.

This is definitely a fun read. I will say I kept thinking I new what was going to happen next but until the very end I was always wrong.

~Bir Elin Sesi Var, Anthony Burgess~

Kiváló

Maybe this would have been a good comment on society at the time but it really doesn't hold up any more.

63/200 - "ცალი ხელით ტაშისკვრა"

1961 წელს გამოიცა ფსევდონიმით, ჯოზეფ კელით. ბერჯესის გამორჩეული ნაწარმოებია.

ვიკიპედიის მიხედვით, ბერჯესი გაბრაზებული ყოფილა მისი თანამედროვე დასავლური განათლებისა და კულტურის დეგრადაციით და ამ წიგნით "ამხილა".

უცნაური წიგნია. თავიდან მომწონდა წიგნის კონცეფცია და სიუჟეტური ხაზიც მიზიდავდა, მაგრამ ბოლოში უკვე მთავარი პერსონაჟის, ჰაუარდ შირლის გამანიაკება და გასადისტება ჩემთვის ცოტა უცნაური იყო. გასაგები, მაგრამ უცნაური.

წიგნის ბოლო ოცდაათი გვერდი "კოლექციონერის" ვაიბებს ასხივებდა, უბრალოდ იმ განსხვავებით, რო გამარჯვებული ქალი აღმოჩნდება.

ბერჯესი მრავალმხრივი კაცი ყოფილა და ეს მის შემოქმედებასაც ეტყობა. ამ წიგნში რამდენიმე ჟანრია გაერთიანებული და თან საკმაოდ კარგად. ნაწარმოების არცერთი ნაწილი მოსაბეზრებელი არ არის და ეს, რა თქმა უნდა, ავტორის დამსახურებაა.

"კოლექციონერს" ჰგავს ბოლოში ძაან. თან რაღაც I'll be back დასასრულია. ფაულზთან კლეგი მიგვანიშნებს რო კოლექციას ახალ გოგოს შემატებს და აქ ჯენეტ შირლი მიგვანიშნებს, რო ისიც მზადაა მისი კოლექცია (დაბრედილი ქმრები) გაამდიდროს, საჭიროების შემთხვევაში.

ძაან ბევრ წიგნს ვუწერ ხუთ ვარსკვლავს, მარა რასაც ვკითხულობ უმეტესობა ცვეტში კარგია. აქ სათქმელიც კარგად მოვიდა ჩემამდე და ამბავიც საინტერესო იყო.

Superb pacing.

Burgess is a master of this genre - first person autobiographical "racconteuring", for lack of a better term. In this case, his wry retelling of a game show contestant's life going horribly wrong is superb. The narrator, the contestant's young wife, plays with the form in a similar, but more self-aware fashion than say Holden Caufield, in "Catcher in the Rye". The result is a madcap tale - English through and through - where we can never quite be sure how much has been left out of the tale and just how much the narrator may or may not have contributed to events.

Sexist? Of course. But it is Burgess. And for the genre and the post-war historical setting, it works.

This book is insane but also surprisingly relevant.

More like 3.5 stars. None of the horror and wonder of A Clockwork Orange, but noticeably by the same author, complete with the onomatopoeia and invented words (not an entire youth-culture language, just smatterings here and there), a very voicey and self-centered narrator, a series of loving potshots at the British working class, a heavy dose of humor-laden dark cynicism, and some startling narrative turns. This one's about a very practical-minded young British woman whose husband comes up with a strange, grand scheme to get rich and then waste all the money in pursuit of a goal that's heavily foreshadowed, but only fully spelled out at the end. It's a fast-moving, entertaining yarn, but what really got me was the uniqueness of the voice, specifically of a narrator who takes pride and pleasure in an ordinary grocery-store job, a simple council flat, and simple homey meals with her husband, and is a little embarrassed at having more than that, and what comes with it.

Loved this book. The husband seemed to be kinda autistic or had some Gumpish (the Forrest Gump from the book(s) not the movie, quite different characters) qualities. The descriptions of life in the time period setting were great.