- Paperback: 374 pages
- Publisher: Vintage; New edition edition (16 Jun 1994)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0099302578
- ISBN-13: 978-0099302575
- Product Dimensions: 19.6 x 13 x 2.8 cm
- Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 3,682,838 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
Did you know you can trade in your old books for an Amazon.co.uk Gift Card to spend on the things you want? Plus, get an extra £5 Gift Certificate when you trade in books worth £10 or more before June 30, 2012. Visit the Books Trade-In Store for more details. |
Product details |
More About the Author
Product Description
Product Description
An exploration of childhood secrets, adult deceptions, and the cruelty of English family life. A middle-aged weatherman - one-time husband, uncle and rapacious womanizer - sets out on a disturbing journey into his own past, on the unexpected reappearance of his childhood friend, Stella.
Book Description
This is the story of weatherman Giles Doughty. Giles does not wear sensible ties and knitted jumpers like other weathermen. Rather, his life is a whirlwind - of romance, sex and decadence. But then one day he is shocked out of his self-absorption by the reappearance of his childhood friend Stella Murdoch. Stella, who disappeared suddenly so many years ago. As the novel develops and darkens, Giles is forced into an exploration of his childhood, and of cruelty. He has to face what he has always tried to escape - a mystery, at the heart of which lies Stella. A confession, a journey, an enquiry - embracing the great storm of October 1987, murderous doings, and eccentric characters - this brilliant first novel from Tim Binding is bound to thrill and delight all its readers.
--This text refers to an alternate
Paperback
edition.
Tag this product(What's this?)Think of a tag as a keyword or label you consider is strongly related to this product.
Tags will help all customers organise and find favourite items. |
Sell a Digital Version of This Book in the Kindle Store
If you are a publisher or author and hold the digital rights to a book, you can sell a digital version of it in our Kindle Store.
Learn more
What Other Items Do Customers Buy After Viewing This Item?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
4 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I've read a couple of other Binding books (Perfect Execution and Island Madness) and was pleased to have been bought this as a present. I confess that, when I opened the book, I didn't realise that it was written before his other novels (it may even have been his debut). Reading the book, however, one quickly senses that this is an author who, while talented, has not yet got the gauge of his abilities. Its a bit like an adolescent boy who has just put on a growth spurt - all the parts are there but they their owner is not quite sure how to use them. The style is undoubtedly identifiable as that which is later used in his other books. The storyline is just as bleak - dealing with fantasy, betrayal and secrets. I have to say, however, that it was not a book that brought me much joy. None of the characters have many redeeming features - least of all the central character. Giles, the "hero" is a pretty unpleasant piece of work. His exploration into the rather wierd events of his adolescence are set against the backdrop of the great storm of 1987. I guess this must be a symbolic sub-plot or something (I'll leave that to the Eng Lit guys to categorize). His childhood included growing up in a tightly repressed family in a tightly repressed street in what appears to be a tightly repressed Rochester in the late 60s / early 70s. This repression takes its toll on Giles. He rebels in small ways. The disapperance of his neighbour / girlfriend / partner in rebellion leads to him be suspected of comlicity. He knows a little about her disapperance, and the repression of this information has a profound effect on his psyche. It certainly helps turn him into a rather nasty adult. Anyway, the novel deals with his attempts to solve the mystery of the disappearance almost as a cathartic cure for his adult problems. Dark stuff.
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
2 reviews
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
a need to read
1 April 2000
Format:Hardcover
Tim Binding is spellbinding, or at least this book is. The story of a weatherman, shameless and without conscience, shielded from the events of his childhood untill Stella Muchmore's name suddenly appears, like a ghost from the past, leaving him with a need to come clean and to discover the real truth. Set against England's great storm of '87 this wonderfully written book is funny, tragic and disturbing, and left me anxious to discover what had happened to Stella Muchmore, so much so that I stayed in bed for most of the day, forgetting to breakfast and hardly daring to breathe. Quite brilliant.
A page-turner, for sure
17 Nov 2007
Format:Paperback
Here's a novel that doesn't get to the point until it's ready to, with a satisfying payoff for the patient reader. It's a confessional: A man who, on the surface, cares little for commitment. He strikes the reader initially as the shallowest of libertines. But gradually, Binding draws us closer to the center of his story -- the tragedy that existed behind the quiet walls of his childhood home and the seething restlessness of the ordinary working-folk who were his neighbors. The second half of the novel gels, picks up speed, and the reader forgets all the apparent blind alleys and red herrings of the first chapters. The flashbacks are relentless, but skillfully employed.
Truthfully, this was probably meant to be several novels, or perhaps several short stories ... but they work together to paint a vivid portrait of English life in the post-war decades, up to the present time.
Truthfully, this was probably meant to be several novels, or perhaps several short stories ... but they work together to paint a vivid portrait of English life in the post-war decades, up to the present time.
Were these reviews helpful?
Let us know
Customer Discussions
|
This product's forum
Active discussions in related forums
Search Customer Discussions
|
Related forums
|
Listmania!
Look for similar items by category
Look for similar items by subject
Feedback
- Would you like to update product info or give feedback on images?
- I am the Author, and I want to comment on my book.
- I am the Publisher, and I want to comment on this book.
