4 posts tagged “comedy”

This novel is set in London, just over 100 years into the future.  And what a future it is!  After a great flood came in 2014, London is practically under water.  Disease is rife (which child mortality rates at 50%), promiscuity is not only accepted, but actively encouraged, and privacy is illegal.  Furthermore, the vaccination of children is a heinous crime, as it is thought to be against 'The Love's' will.

Living in this depressing city is Trafford, an ordinary man, with an extraordinary yearning - he wants privacy.  He hates the fact that literally every aspect of a person's life has to be loaded onto the internet for anybody to read (it is expected that people put up videos of childbirth, sex and any other intimate acts), and that people are expected to keep a blog revealing all of their innermost thoughts.  

Trafford and his wife Chantorria (some of the least unusual character names in the book) have recently had a daughter, and with the infant mortality rates being so high, Trafford decides to have her vaccinated, risking great danger and the threat of death if this is discovered.  In doing so, he becomes involved in seeking out others who may feel the same way as he does - who want to think for themselves, rather than be told what to think.

I have yet to discover a Ben Elton novel that I haven't enjoyed.  This one is too funny and irreverent to be scary or disturbing in the way that novels like Nineteen Eighty Four are, but nonetheless, Elton does make some interesting points and observations about where the current obsession for celebrity gossip and reality television could lead.  It's not a believable story, but I don't believe that it was ever intended to be.

Trafford is the most believable character in the story - as it is told from his point of view, this is probably to be expected.  Many of the other characters are stereotypes and caricatures, but this is not a criticism - and it is possible to recognise some of their behaviour as typical of the type of person they are based on.

So all in all, if you are looking for a serious study about humanity and a dystopian society, this is not the book for you.  But if you are looking for an entertaining and light hearted read with some very pointed observations, this comes highly recommended.

The first thing to mention is that Denis Leary is not a medical Doctor - the Doctor in his name is due to the fact that he has been granted an Honorary Degree.  I mention it because anyone familiar with Denis Leary might be shocked (as I was) to see him referred to as Doctor!

For anyone not familiar with Denis Leary, he is an outspoken, often controversial, Irish-American writer, comedian and actor.  He polarises audiences; generally people think he is extremely offensive, or extremely funny.  I fall into the latter category.

Leary is famous for his onstage rants, and this book is an extended such rant.  He discusses what in his opinion is wrong with America today (blaming lazy parenting,over medication, bad role models and the blame culture amongst other things), and says what he would do to put things right.  To be clear, this book is obviously meant to be comedy, although he does raise many serious points in it.

It's not an autobiography, although there is plenty here about Leary's childhood and his relationship with his parents, especially his mother, who is obviously close to.  He also talks about his marriage and children, and it is obvious that his family is the most important thing in the world to him - and he is frustrated that so many people don't put their family first (or even second or third).

The book made me laugh out loud on many occasions.  If you are easily offended by swearing, then I would advise you to approach with great caution (or just avoid altogether), but if you sometimes wonder at what on earth the world is coming to, and don't object to a fair amount of bluntness and curse words, and feel like you need a good belly laugh, then I would definitely recommend this book to you.

This is a very entertaining, very quick (I read it in one sitting) book, written by Bill Maher, American comedian, tv presenter, writer and social campaigner.

Maher hosts a HBO television show called Real Time with Bill Maher, and New Rules is a segment on that show, in which he comes up with ideas for new rules to help make society run more easily.  This book is a collection of those rules.  Most of them are flippant and funny (one of his new rules involves the idea of Bob Dylan being the 'voice of a generation'; Maher makes the observation that if a generation could choose a voice, it would pick a better one than Dylan's - and that is the kind of tone which runs through most of the book). 

However, being a stauch campaigner for the Democratic party - although he did support independent Ralph Nader in the 2004 election - there are a smattering of rules which reflect Maher's opinion on certain topical issues - stem cell research and same sex marriage, are two examples.  On these matters, Maher drops the flippancy somewhat, and talks passionately about what he believes.

Overall though, this is a funny and light hearted book - with plenty of "He's absolutely right!" moments.