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lllSlOlthAl l)lt/\ly1/\ HARI KUNZRU The Impressionist (Hamish Hamilton 912.95% 0...
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The British colortial en‘pire is an iii‘trr'ntg source of satire. The image of the ‘.'.’ltlt(? ran 1." a tx'xeen' suit atop an elonhant ‘.'.'.tl he eternally ch.i::klesoi"e. and the much {rodeo write." and journals'. Hari Kllft/“J digs deep Into this rich Vern ct :ton‘ed‘.
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PW. thl/«L {Ll-‘I‘tz’bk MARIO VARGAS LLOSA
The Feast Of The Goat
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104 THE LIST. ’ ' '7.
F-‘ujimora for the presidency of Peru in 1992. he knows the husiness for real.
This tale tells of the return of a middle~aged '.'.roman to her native Dominican Repuhlic. Urania is the daughter of a former senator. and henchman to Trujillo. the hloodthirsty dictator \.'.'liose hehayiour. hoth puhlic and private. hlighted the country for Itt) year‘s hetore his 19(31 ; ss; ssination.
there are t\.'.'o other str'arids to a story told riiziiiily in flashhack. exan‘ining the n‘otiyes of the gerieralissimo's ass; ssrns and the man himself in his last days. The novel is longer than needs to he. hut there's still plenty of :ncitient. with the chapters dealing ‘.'.’!ill tlrania‘s atteii‘pts to
cone to terms '.'.lill her
I stricti‘;
court". 's history and her nos: :ier‘reprt. wordless father acting as a hreather froitt the grueso'i‘e historical S;'.-:>"j.iiiie. ‘l'lirilling and ;'\‘;ti'.i::tt‘.'t3.
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.‘v'fillli RN SA? lltl SAM LIPSYTE The Subject Steve rl :amrngr: $9.99:
l'i this rlehtit novel. painkili. nip New York author Ban lipsyte creates a ‘.‘.reird and fantastic postmorier‘i: .'.’,.'5(1 .'.'l‘.:cn j)l'<)‘.|(l(if§ pent, of laughs and the ’;’l’l fix/rightful moment. l,;.’. .'.’l‘l’;." r.'trri‘zit<;-i',' fails ’l€:£5‘.’(;' or: its .rtitral inormse
Narrator Steve is dying troii‘ a'i :inkncwn tiisease with no s,'ri‘i>toiiis. ()r is he? As he and his condition are ii‘ar.iptirat<;-<l oy everyone around lllll‘_ he goes in search of a cure. ()1 does no? Opt, to (jet 'r rieeper' tic-.ihle. ()r 'i‘a}.lre hot. ‘.'./hate'.'er it; real, :joing on is neuer "art-v r.'ear. aritl that's
ESSAYCX)UJYTHON JOHN MCGRATH
Naked Thoughts That Roam About (Nick Hern
Books $714.99) .00.
I first heard mention of this book at least as long ago as 1996. From time to time I would ask John McGrath of its progress and he would grow evasive and apologetic and mumble something about deadlines. I stopped asking. And now, three months after his death from leukaemia, a gift from beyond the grave: that long promised
collection.
Which is both a joy and a frustration. A joy because, bringing together essays, programme notes, interviews and articles from as early as his undergraduate days in Cambridge, through his pioneering role as founder, director and principal playwright of 7:84, to his more recent excursions as a film producer for Freeway Films, it forms a provocative, argumentative and passionate profile of a prolific artist and
committed agitator.
And a frustration because you’d just love to have McGrath around to let you argue further, to contest the ideas, to continue the debate. You’d want to agree that many arts funding decisions are determined by ruling class aesthetics, but also want to suggest that working class theatre is not beyond criticism and that it’s possible for even the most politically sharp company to run
out of artistic steam.
John McGrath
that
roam about:
Reflections on Theatre edited by leine Holdsworth
A joy and a frustration
And you’d want to say that the man who seemed bad tempered at the time of his second essay collection, The Bone Won’t Break, now sounds remarkably prescient. His anticipation of the power of the multinationals and the rise of postmodernist art, decades before those things really took hold, suggests we need his voice now more than ever. (Mark Fisher)
the point. as the author takes ‘.'."(}|l-£‘.lll‘(}(l satirical pot shots at such \.'.rorthy hut ohxvrous targets as modern media. medicine and personality" l)£1f;(3(l cints.
lipsyte has a heaiii'flil i'ical edge to his writing. and a well honed ear for r‘rrlirt.ilous dialogue. hut a 7ack of real insight lets down ‘.'.’lt£tl is ()tll(}t".'.’|f3(i a joyous rant of a hook. Il)oug Johnstonei
ltl [Al IONSl lll’ [fit/\lyt/‘x HOWARD JACOBSEN
Who’s Sorry Now? rJonathan ()ape S‘1t3.‘;)9i OOO
I?» mm» Hume.- '
[Neryone's favourite Jesxish explorer is hack or: his favourite suhject. the sexual hattlefield. His new novel explores the reiationsliip her ween t.‘./o n‘ale trieiLds: lVlithHl a l)ll!l£tll(l(?lllrt] sexaholirt who finds solace .i‘- just
ahout any woman he meets except his \xrife: and the monrxjamous Charlie. 20 years into his marriage and still sane. However they hoth have thoughts ahout the way the other lives and one fateful day these musings are yocalrsed. ‘r’Vhat follows is. in turns. a thoughtful and funny account of just how each person regards. or disregards. the sanctity of marriage as they swap roles. ‘.'-."l\."(}f3 and mistresses. Unfortunater hetore you get to the point of the tale. you have to wade through 1()() pages of Jacohson setting the scene yery slowly making you feel like screaming at him to hurry it up. Once you've finished though. I guarantee you will no longer think the gr; ss is étl‘.‘.£.1\,’53 greener on the other side. rAly Burti
f It M ANN YSIS
A R MACDONALD 8: WALTER DONAHUE EDS
Projections 12 it after 3‘1.l.99i OOOO
Vi’liat's the point of going to film school. MacDonald asks. when ‘.'.’|lll digital yideo we can
all make our own llt()\. re and our mistakes without rt costing the ll‘.l|ll()l‘.f3£1(I(}lltll()l(l feature would demand? In answering the guestion. MacDonald
and others inten/iew frinr
teachers. students and graduates for their take
on formal film education.
and arriye at ll‘lXOU results. Often though. the mixture of pluses and negatryes are t'rrthrii the one individual. Scotland's very own lynne Ramsay asked of the NH: 'What the fuck am I doing here?" while accepting she wouldn't have met some of her dearest friends and colleagues were rt not for the school.
there are also additional inter'\.iews here With international filriirrrakers talking ahoiit the:i<:r'aft l)umont. Salles. (Don and
l’awlikr )\.‘."fSl\l in an
annual that. as (tl‘.','£i‘,'f3. easily justifzes its price. iTony M(:l<!hl)ini
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JAMES PATTERSON & ANDREW GROSS 2nd Chance rHeadlihe 5‘1099i .0
'Aaron Winslow would never forget the next few minutes." \r‘y’liy'? Because poor old Aaron has the mischance to he caught up in the sharp shooting power games of a ".'.'l‘.ll(‘: supremacist serial killer with a grudge aga'nst cops and a irenrthant for Greek mythology. l. uckily for Aaron. tough San lrancrsco cop Lllldeél‘, ‘Buttercup' Boxer is on the case. and she's gonna pull out al: the stops to catch the killer.
l’attersoi‘. ilke Jeffrey [\rcheir is rims. far too lftlfl\. to actually ‘.‘.'rite his
o\.'.'n nooks. and has