- Paperback: 368 pages
- Publisher: Harvest/HBJ Book; Reprint edition (April 2003)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0156027798
- ISBN-13: 978-0156027793
- Product Dimensions: 20.2 x 13.4 x 2.4 cm
- Average Customer Review: 2.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 3,462,329 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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More About the Author
Product Description
Economist Books of the Year
'Mark Costello's work should have been born with the words Great American Novel stamped on the front’
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Jonathan Franzen, author of 'The Corrections'
‘Mark Costello stakes out territory which you would never have guessed it was vital to read about'
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Inside This Book
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First Sentence
Center Effing is a town between the ocean and I-95, on the old and settled seaboard of New Hampshire. Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
Center Effing is a town between the ocean and I-95, on the old and settled seaboard of New Hampshire. Read the first page
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Concordance
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars
where's the rest of it?,
By A Customer
This review is from: Big If (Paperback)
If you are thinking of reading this book, be warned: the book doesn't "end", it's just that the writing stop...
5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
Partly comic, partly serious, and certainly different.,
By
This review is from: Big If (Hardcover)
Often described as a light-hearted "riff," rather than a satire, this novel of American government and politics casts an eye on the Secret Service and its all-too-human agents. Working to protect an unnamed Vice-Presidential candidate on a pre-primary visit to New Hampshire, the assigned agents are also dealing simultaneously with their own insecurities, quirks, and numerous dysfunctions. As this wry novel evolves, the reader discovers that the differences between those we employ to protect us and those we want to be protected from may be very slim, indeed.Half a dozen Secret Service members, their spouses, parents, children, and lovers; an equal number of computer programmers for Big If, a multiplayer war game on the Web; and the Vice-President, his staff, and campaign workers constitute a huge cast of characters, but each is so idiosyncratic, and the minutiae of his/her daily life so completely articulated, that the characters are memorable, if not fully developed. As Costello expands his scope beyond that of the campaign, he pokes fun at child-rearing practices, prison work-release programs, the real estate market, the expectations of newly-moneyed trophy wives, the addiction to violent computer games, and even the get-out-the-vote efforts of campaign volunteers. The reader must be patient with this novel. Plot is not a major concern, as the book meanders through the lives and backgrounds of multiple characters. Vi Asplund, the main character, receives only slightly more emphasis than other characters, and conflict and dramatic action are minimal, dependent more upon the characters' past histories than upon new events. Delightful metaphors ("a tall, soft sofa of a boy," "a snippy poodle kind of sneeze") are sprinkled throughout, but they are sometimes buried in long lists of detail. The humor often feels self-conscious. This is a most unusual novel, one which defies the conventions and pushes the boundaries, and I suspect that few readers will remain neutral about it. Mary Whipple
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Big If? No, just Big Disappointment,
By A Customer
This review is from: Big If (Paperback)
Do not be mislead by the synopsis to this book - it bares very little resemblence to the contents. I read this book as it was the book of the month for our book club and its recommendation had been from various newspapers and basically looking at the back of the book.We were expecting a cross between the West Wing and 24 - oh how disappointed we were! There were many leading characters and the only one mentioned on the cover, Felker, figured very little. Time and time again you'd get loads of details about a character that never led anywhere. In the case of one of the agents we got a far more graphic description of his sex life than anyone needed - again detail for the sake of it. We all kept hoping that perhaps something exciting would happen - well it didn't! The only thing remotely exciting happened within the last chapter and even then ended in a damp squib. If you are looking for an exciting book with Federal Agents gone bad, assasination plots or basically anything even remotely interesting - don't buy this book! The author missed chance after chance to turn this book around... such a shame. There will be 8 copies from our book group at a car boot sale near you very soon! Oh and I think Amazon should introduce a '0 star' rating as I think all in our group would agree that 1 star is being charitably generous.
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