Book reviews (part 3)

I haven't managed to read as many books as I'd have liked in recent months, as I've been working on proof-reading and formatting my own soon to be published book, but I have managed to read a few. Here are a handful of reviews of some of the most recent books which I've read.

The Hoax by Clifford Irving

The Hoax by Clifford Irving - 4.6 / 5.0

The Hoax tells the true story of Clifford Irving, a writer who infamously faked the authorised biography of Howard Hughes, an eccentric and reclusive American billionaire. The art of deception is a theme which features in many of my own stories, and it’s a concept which greatly appeals to me as the basis for a story, so as you’d expect I thoroughly enjoyed The Hoax.

Admittedly, the book starts quite slowly as Clifford describes the research which he and his assistant, Richard Suskind, carried out in preparation for writing the biography, but once the story gets into its stride and unforeseen developments in their plan start to occur, The Hoax then really starts to come alive.

My Legendary Girlfriend by Mike Gayle

My Legendary Girlfriend by Mike Gayle – 4.0  / 5.0

Although I enjoyed My Legendary Girlfriend, I have to admit that it didn’t really live up to my initial high expectations. The opening chapter was extremely funny and had me eagerly anticipating more of the same. However, main character Will Kelly then spends a large chunk of the rest of the book moping around feeling sorry for himself and pining over his ex-girlfriend, and although the story is still told in a humorous way, the gloomy undertones meant that it didn’t quite match the superb standard of the comedy at the start.

I did appreciate the ending, however, and overall this is still an enjoyable book, but I can’t help feeling that a few more light-hearted scenes along the way in place of all the moping would have made this an excellent book, rather than merely a pretty decent book which was excellent in patches.

The Rotters' Club by Jonathan Coe

The Rotters' Club by Jonathan Coe – 3.9 / 5.0

The Rotters' Club tells the story of three friends growing up in the Seventies and although it deals with some pretty heavy subjects, it's nevertheless a humorous and entertaining read. I have to admit that I find the Seventies a pretty dreary decade so given the subject matter, author Jonathan Coe had a tough task to win me over with this book, but despite my anti-Seventies bias I still enjoyed The Rotters' Club.

The characters in particular are expertly brought to life, and perhaps the most effective way Jonathan Coe does this is by the telling of short stories within the framework of the overall novel. Some of the chapters could be read individually away from the rest of the novel and they would still make interesting stories in their own right.

Blockbuster by Tom Shone

Blockbuster by Tom Shone – 4.7 / 5.0

Blockbuster records the history of the Hollywood blockbuster and recalls the story behind such movies as Jaws, Star Wars, Raiders Of The Lost Ark, E.T., Close Encounters Of The Third Kind, Alien, Titanic and many other big Hollywood hits. Tom Shone expertly recalls the way these movies were received by the public at the time, and right from the start of this book it is obvious that Tom has clearly chosen his subject matter based on a topic which he visibly has a great deal of positive enthusiasm for.

At times this book reminded me of the magical emotions I first felt when going to the cinema as a child and I would therefore definitely recommend this book to anyone who loves blockbuster movies.

You can find more book reviews by Charles Fudgemuffin below:
Book reviews (part 10)
Book reviews (part 11)

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