- Hardcover: 329 pages
- Publisher: Bantam Press; First edition (1 Oct 1999)
- Language English
- ISBN-10: 0593044797
- ISBN-13: 978-0593044797
- Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.6 x 3 cm
- Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (108 customer reviews)
- Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 807,375 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
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Product Description
Amazon.co.uk Review
Whenever Sam thinks about babies, he envisages rivers of vomit and sleepless nights. But wife Lucy can't walk past Mothercare without crying. What's more, she can't seem to conceive--not by traditional methods, anyway. Hippy confidante Drusilla suggests an array of New Age remedies, including the intimate use of nutmeg oil and al fresco lovemaking. As Lucy faces a possible verdict of infertility, her love for Sam enters tailspin, accelerated by the advent of arrogant actor Carl Phipps. Meanwhile Sam, desperate to escape his tedious BBC job, conceives the inconceivable--turning the intimacies of their battle for babies into an acclaimed movie script.
Inconceivable tells a poignant and heart-rending story with Elton's trademark wit, creating a novel that is entertaining and emotionally satisfying; as explosive as Popcorn and with the incendiary humour of Blast From the Past. It courageously tackles its central theme from both the male and the female points of view, and while delivering laughs on every page, it steers clear of laddish clichés. Lucy's tale, though pregnant with unfulfilled emotion, never stints on humour. "There seem," she fumes, "to be more urban myths attached to infertility than there are to ... film stars filling their bottoms with small animals."
Aside from the rich vein of gags about DIY conception (Sam has to leave a power lunch with the excuse: "Sorry, my wife is ovulating ..."), Elton also subjects the TV industry to relentless stand-up-style bombardment, giving birth to some brilliant asides which enrich the main story but never overpower it. Funny, tragic, true and ultimately heartwarming, this book should be available on the National Health Service. --Matthew Baylis
Review
Praise for Blast From The Past:
‘Only Ben Elton could combine uncomfortable questions about gender politics wtih a gripping, page-turning narrative and jokes that make you laugh out loud.’
Tony Parsons
‘Elton at his most outrageously entertaining.’
Cosmopolitan
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
I used to live in the UK and had heared Ben Elton on BBC, both TV and radio. I always wanted to read some of his books. So during my last visit to London I just grabbed it off the shelf in a bookshop without knowing anything about it, just that it was by Ben Elton. Over the Christmas season I had time to indulged. I read it in a very short time, it so gripped me. I laughed so much at times,I cried till my tummy hurt. The way he contrasts his and her feelings were just too real. I could identify, if not with the subject, but surely with the gender pictures he paints. Also his insight into 'the inner workings of the BBC, especially since 'outsourcing' has become common, is very well communicate. I learnd a lot about the subject of infertility and being entertained at the same time. The language of the story reminded me very much of my time in the UK and I can only recommend it if you need a good and hard laugh. As a result of reading this book I will buy some of his other books as well.
4 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is one of the best books I have ever read simply because it made me laugh,cry and sent me on an emotional rollercoaster which most books simply cannot achieve. Certainly a book I'll be re-reading.
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Ben Elton taps his personal career to produce a book centered around a couple working at the BBC. The entire book is formed from the couple's personal diaries, created to help then deal with the difficulty of getting pregnant. As per usual, the Elton brand of wit is sharp, rude and cutting edge, hitting on the taboo areas of our everyday lives most people don't feel comfortable talking about. It's interesting reading since Elton never hints at where he's leading you, or to about which subject he will open up like a can of worms next. The charactisation will make you ask questions of yourself as Elton is uncanny in his portrayal of human psychology and behaviour - it's very Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus. So far, it's all good news. However, I did find that the actual flow of the book was somewhat impeded by the Diary Entry form of the book. Overall it's a good read; which is on-the-ball with cultural events and humour, but the format, although original, prevents real immersion and gets rather stale towards the end.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Sorry Ben, not this time...
Accepting their place in the literary lexicon, lad-lit maybe but told with the humour of a stand-up comedian, I've always enjoyed Ben Elton books, but unfortunately I just couldn't... Read more
Published 5 days ago by Rupan M
A great read withlaugh out loud moments
I loved this book - it's written in a diary form, two separate diaries of the main characters and some of it I found hilarious. Read more
Published 6 months ago by Naj
INCONCEIVABLE
This is the only Ben Elton book I have read and I enjoyed it. It is the story of Sam and Lucy who tell via their memoirs the difficulties they are experiencing conceiving a baby. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Amanda
compelling read
Very good buy, the book came intact, and now I cannot put the book down, now all my friends want to borrow it too
Published 12 months ago by J. H. Chapple
Alright...
This book is well written but at the end of the day it's just about a woman who lives with her insensitive boyfriend whom she wants to have a baby with...
Published 14 months ago by Kimi
Very very poor... bought it for 10pence (might return it)
I don't know what I'm missing but considering the headline 5 star review is by "A Customer"...
I shouldve realised when the back comments were from Cosmopoliton and... Read more
I shouldve realised when the back comments were from Cosmopoliton and... Read more
Published 19 months ago by Ross Carruthers
Different Than The Average
Ben Elton, as many of us fans out there know, tends to write murder thrillers with that touch of comedy that everything he has ever done, and ever will do, has. Read more
Published on 21 Sep 2005 by Samuel Simpson
Maybe Baby - Definitely Excellent
"Inconceivable" is probably familiar to many readers through the film version , "Maybe Baby". Well, I haven't actually seen the film, so I came fresh to the novel, and I'm very... Read more
Published on 27 Aug 2005 by Mr. D. Clark
HYSTEROSALPINGOGRAMS AND ALL THAT
Ben Elton's style has been got under a bit of control since the heady early days of Stark. He still takes the occasional potshot at incidental targets, but he no longer fires a... Read more
Published on 20 July 2005 by DAVID BRYSON
Reality Fiction
Elton uses an unsual writing technique, where Sam and Lucy's lives are described via their own memoirs. Read more
Published on 19 Jun 2005 by "dahool07"
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