In his first short-story collection since "The Acid House", Irvine Welsh sets us five tricky questions. In 'Rattlesnakes' how do three young Americans find themselves lost in the desert, and why does one find himself performing fellatio on another while being watched by the bare-breasted Madeline and two armed Mexicans? Who is the mysterious Korean chef who has moved upstairs to Chicago socialite Kendra Cross, in 'The D.O.G.S. of Lincoln Park', and what does he have to do with the disappearance of her faithful pooch Toto? In the title story, can Mickey Baker - an expat English bar-owner ducking and diving on the Costa Brava - manage to keep all his balls in the air: maintaining his barmaid Cynthia's body weight at the sexual maximum while attending to the youthful Persephone and dodging his persistent ex-wife and a pair of Spanish gangsters? By what train of events does Raymond Wilson Butler, writing a biography of a legendary US film director in "Miss Arizona" come to end up as a piece of movie memorabilia? And how, in the novella "The Kingdom of Fife" will Jason King - diminutive ex-trainee jockey and Subbuteo star of Cowdenbeath - fare in the world of middle-class female equestrians, and will he ever enjoy the tender and long-anticipated charms of Jenni Cahill and her remarkable jodhpurs? All of these questions are posed, and answered, in these five extraordinary stories: stories that remind us that Irvine Welsh is a master of the shorter form, a brilliant storyteller, and - unarguably - one of the funniest and filthiest writers in Britain.
If You Liked School, You'll Love Work... (Storycuts)
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Review
`The voices are pitched perfectly, particularly in the title story.'
-- Mary Fitzgerald, Newstatesman
'I haven't read anything so entertaining fiction wise for a long
time... Irresistibly funny... Irvine Welsh is superbly comic'
-- Scottish Review of Books
'I hold Irvine Welsh in higher regard than any living Scottish
writer...Welsh excels at the short form.' -- Scotland on Sunday
'Welsh's narrative control is so expert that he can elevate
anything.' -- Literary Review
`This is vintage Welsh with a twist.'
-- The Herald
-- Mary Fitzgerald, Newstatesman
'I haven't read anything so entertaining fiction wise for a long
time... Irresistibly funny... Irvine Welsh is superbly comic'
-- Scottish Review of Books
'I hold Irvine Welsh in higher regard than any living Scottish
writer...Welsh excels at the short form.' -- Scotland on Sunday
'Welsh's narrative control is so expert that he can elevate
anything.' -- Literary Review
`This is vintage Welsh with a twist.'
-- The Herald
Book Description
Five short stories from the undisputed funniest and filthiest writer in Britain - Irvine Welsh.
--This text refers to an alternate
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
18 of 19 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Its been 13 or so years since Welsh last published a collection of short stories. Welsh lacks somewhat(or even a lot) in this genre but at least his last collection "The Acid House" included such gems as "A soft touch", "The House of John Deaf", "Disnae Matter" and others...
..sadly "If you liked School you'll love work" has no such gems. The short stories are all rather flat and dry and without soul.
HOWEVER!...the novella "The Kingdom of Fife" contained within said collection is Welsh at his best - a star burst of comical/whimsical/dark/surreal/ energy...and the purchase of this collection is worth it for that novella alone.
A great Novella...shame about the short stories.
..sadly "If you liked School you'll love work" has no such gems. The short stories are all rather flat and dry and without soul.
HOWEVER!...the novella "The Kingdom of Fife" contained within said collection is Welsh at his best - a star burst of comical/whimsical/dark/surreal/ energy...and the purchase of this collection is worth it for that novella alone.
A great Novella...shame about the short stories.
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful
By Jeni Riley
Format:Paperback
I've read all of Irvine Welsh's books (Filth & Glue being my favourites) but this just didn't hit the mark for me. I think he's maybe run out of ideas. The tales in here aren't bad but they're not what we've copme to expect from a guy that used to so easily have us laughing and hurling at the same time with his twisted humour.
I much more enjoyed Mark Hayhurst's Friday at the Nobody Inn, that reminded me of Welsh at his best and this is him at his worst.
I much more enjoyed Mark Hayhurst's Friday at the Nobody Inn, that reminded me of Welsh at his best and this is him at his worst.
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By b
Format:Paperback
In this collection of stories, Welsh writes with energy and imagination, developing five very different but interesting works. In my opinion, 'Rattlesnakes' is the least interesting story in the book. The characters are poorly developed and the ending unsatisfying. After this disappointing start, the book improves rapidly.' If You Like School, You'll Love Work', the story of the ex-pat bar-owner managing his relationships with his women seems very real and is energetic and entertaining.'The Dogs of Lincoln Park' manages to explore the dangers of racial stereotyping with verve and humour. 'Miss Arizona' feel a bit like a parody of a Poe tale, but settings and characters are explored superbly well.
The highlight of the book is the novel, 'The King of Fife'. Welsh returns to Scotland and writes with confidence in dialect. The writing has energy and humour, exploring the passion of a failed jockey from Cowdenbeath for a horse-obsessed girl. Welsh writes with knowledge and understanding of class differences and this modern interpretation of Romeo and Juliet is a rich an rewarding tale.
The highlight of the book is the novel, 'The King of Fife'. Welsh returns to Scotland and writes with confidence in dialect. The writing has energy and humour, exploring the passion of a failed jockey from Cowdenbeath for a horse-obsessed girl. Welsh writes with knowledge and understanding of class differences and this modern interpretation of Romeo and Juliet is a rich an rewarding tale.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
3.0 out of 5 stars
A little disappointing
Having read most of Irvine Welsh's books and found them to be extremely entertaining, this one was little disappointing in that I felt the author was a little too heavy with the... Read more
Published 7 months ago by aitch
3.0 out of 5 stars
Some good some bad
This book is a mixed bag. the first Rattlesnakes is awful, theres one thing being depraved, which we expect from Irvine Welsh, but this story goes no where from start to finish. Read more
Published on 27 Oct 2010 by TonyQ
3.0 out of 5 stars
A fallen star
Oh dear. Does anyone remember what it was like when Irvine Welsh first burst on the scene? The anarchic, visceral energy of "Trainspotting"? Read more
Published on 3 Aug 2010 by Barry Bootle
3.0 out of 5 stars
Easy to criticise I know..................
Not as raw or "edgy" as Welsh's other work but to be fair I still enjoyed the read.
Having witnessed Welsh read from "Reheated cabbage" at the Edinburgh Book festival... Read more
Having witnessed Welsh read from "Reheated cabbage" at the Edinburgh Book festival... Read more
Published on 1 Dec 2009 by New critic
5.0 out of 5 stars
Perfect
The book came in good timing especially at christmas! it was in great condition and the person whos present it was loved it. thanks
Published on 12 Feb 2009 by Ms. S. Russell
1.0 out of 5 stars
A total waste of paper!!!
It's hard to imagine that this book was written by the same author who gave us Trainspotting and The Acid House. Read more
Published on 27 Sep 2008 by Mighty Meadow
3.0 out of 5 stars
A case of 'writers block' perhaps?....
If You Liked School, You'll Love Work The first few words of the first story had me captivated but after a few pages, the story kind of lost it's way and I found myself losing... Read more
Published on 9 Sep 2008 by A. Joseph
1.0 out of 5 stars
If you like Irvine Welsh borrow this but don't buy it
Hugely disappointing apart from The Kingdom of Fife which is Welsh at his best, the other stories are quite frankly rubbish and wouldn't be out of place in the 1970's horror... Read more
Published on 20 Aug 2008 by D. Baron
4.0 out of 5 stars
Partial return to form
There's an interesting spread of views on this book at the time of writing. I stopped reading Welsh after Glue, which I thought was dreadful. Read more
Published on 12 Aug 2008 by molondas
3.0 out of 5 stars
A bit of a curates egg
Many of the stories in this collection are along the lines of "Irvine Welsh writes Roald Dahl's Tales of the Unexpected". Read more
Published on 29 Jun 2008 by P. G. Harris
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