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Marabou Stork Nightmares [Paperback]

Irvine Welsh (Author)
4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 29 Feb 1996

Roy Strang is engaged in a strange quest in a surrealist South Africa. His mission is to eradicate an evil predator-scavenger bird, the marabou stork, before it drives away the peace-loving flamingo from the picturesque Lake Torto.

But behind this world lies another: the world of Roy's bizarre family, the Scottish housing scheme in which he grew up, his mundane job, a disastrous emigration to Africa, and his youthful life of brutality with a gang of soccer casuals. As one world crashes into the other, this potentially charming story of ornithological goodwill mutates into a filthy tale of violence, abuse and redemption.

(19951018)

Frequently Bought Together

Marabou Stork Nightmares + Glue + Filth
Price For All Three: £18.62

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  • Filth by Irvine Welsh Paperback £6.74

Product details

  • Paperback: 288 pages
  • Publisher: Vintage; New Ed edition (29 Feb 1996)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 009943511X
  • ISBN-13: 978-0099435112
  • Product Dimensions: 12.9 x 1.9 x 19.7 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 16,081 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Product Description

Amazon Review

Irvine Welsh delivers another grisly yet enthralling insight into the mindset of the Scottish underclass in Marabou Stork Nightmares. This bleak tale is told by Roy Strang, a jug-eared underachiever who happens to be in a coma. As he flits in and out of reality in his hospital bed, we learn about the dysfunctional Strang family--Vet, his well-intentioned dinner-lady mother, John, his violent security guard father, half-brothers Bernard and Tony, disabled brother Elgin and naive little sister Kim.

Growing up on a housing estate in Muirhouse, Edinburgh, Roy unavoidably gets into scrapes with other kids and, as his crimes eventually become more serious, the police. Welsh expertly interweaves into this base reality Roy's surreal hallucination of his time spent in South Africa with "Sandy Jamieson"--the fearless hunter (a figment of his troubled mind) with whom he goes in search of the vicious but elusive Marabou Stork, a beast that isn't what it seems to be. Roy trains his mind to shut out the present and finds comfort in his African escapism--anything to avoid dealing with the consequences of his actions in real life, and his mother's singing.

The Strangs move out to South Africa in the hope of making a better life for themselves and to raise their "prospects", but they are disillusioned when, in a country where white skin is considered superior, they still fail to achieve their desires. Back in Muirhouse Roy works his way up to systems analyst from a trainee, but in his own time gets his kicks from football hooliganism; he gets involved with a bad crowd whom he finds himself joining in the docks before long.

The exercise and abuse of power is a consistent theme throughout the book: it's depicted between the hunters and animals, nurse Patricia Devine and Roy, Roy and the family dog, uncle Gordon and Roy, Lochart Dawson and the black South Africans, rapists and their female victim. Having been abused in his early years--physically, verbally and sexually--Roy, in a comatose state, is unable to fight anymore and is rendered a victim as well as a perpetrator in his state of limbo.

Using style nuances now familiar in his work, such as writing in dialect and eschewing quote marks, Welsh presents a modern-day Kafka-esque tale of exaggerated realism, told with dark humour and making sure to blunt any polished edges. --Angela Boodoo

Review

A superbly talented writer...anarchic and entirely invigorating (Scotsman )

A wonderful success: a funny, cleverly composed, genuinely exciting and assured leap of a novel (New Statesman )

Extremely funny... As clever as Alasdair Gray, as elegant as Jeff Torrington, as passionate as James Kelman, Welsh has got it all (Tibor Fischer )

Mind-bendingly good (GQ )

Our most vital of contemporary authors (i-D )
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First Sentence
It. was. me. and. Jamieson. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
13 of 13 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Welsh proves himself a world-class talent. 11 May 1998
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I've read Trainspotting, and Ecstasy and bits of Acid House, and loved the author's work from day one; but when I read Nightmares, I was awestruck. Welsh's talent is amazing. The sheer depth of the piece inspires admiration and humility. I've read nothing to date which so successfully achieves a layering of elements such as consciousness, truth and reality, within a story that one feels honored to have read. Not only is the author's technique flawless, but he has created characters you can actually believe- ones who may not be admirable, but who remain fascinating until the end. I recommend this book to everyone with an appreciation for the art of the English language.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Superb. 26 Jun 2003
By Jordan McClements
Format:Paperback
I read Trainspotting, Ecstacy, Porno, and The Acid House before this book, and this book is definitely the best.
In fact, the best book I have read in years.
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book 22 Jan 1999
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
As with 'Trainspotting' I was amazed at how often I found myself nodding my head in acknowledgment of the basic human truisms Welsh delivers through a sordid cast of characters. This is a story about a young man, Roy Strang, brought up in a squalid - but altogether unexceptional - environment. He narrates the major events of his life to us from the disjointed angle of his near-comatose form as he lies in a hospital bed. The violence of his inner-city life is vividly painted. This is a book about the type of people we've all known at one time or another. Highly recommended.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
2.0 out of 5 stars depressing
Bought this book because I loved Trainspotting,wished I hadnt bothered now. A preetty grim story about sexual abuse, very depressing and overrated.
Published 2 months ago by ben mears
1.0 out of 5 stars JM
A chore to get through awful book. Not so bad bits covering his life in scotland. Read a few of his books in the past but won't be purchasing another if this is the drivel he is... Read more
Published 4 months ago by Moorit
5.0 out of 5 stars Welsh at his best
Welsh at his deepest darkest best - without doubt one of the finest authors of his generation. His visceral warts and all descriptives interspersed with ironic humour never... Read more
Published 5 months ago by Martin Allies
5.0 out of 5 stars Brutal but brilliant!
Took me a little while to get used to the transitions between the different viewpoints. However, this book really pulls you in and I found myself quite attached to the central... Read more
Published 5 months ago by BH Johnson
5.0 out of 5 stars Better than Trainspotting
If you enjoyed Trainspotting or Acid House then you will enjoy this book. My favourite of the Irvine Welsh novels with a powerful message.
Published 10 months ago by P. Cain
5.0 out of 5 stars marabou stork nightmares
great, quick delivery. Item as stated.
This is a brilliant book, ive read it before, one of the best. Read more
Published 13 months ago by sam
5.0 out of 5 stars Marabou Stork Nightmares
I have read all of Welsh's work and this, along with Trainspotting and Glue, will probably go down as his masterpiece. It is stark, poetic and brutal. Read more
Published 21 months ago by E. Williamson
5.0 out of 5 stars One of the top five books I've ever read, and Welsh's finest.
This is a masterpiece. I read it over ten years ago but it is etched in my mind as if I had just put it down. Read more
Published on 27 Dec 2010 by Dr. R. Braithwaite
5.0 out of 5 stars So many stories
Got some strange looks while I was reading this book because of my periodic sniggering and bursts of laughter. Read more
Published on 5 Oct 2010 by C. Tymon
5.0 out of 5 stars Nasty but Good
Summary: Lots of violence (sexual and non-sexual) including a horrendous crime narrated by a patient in ITU (Ray Strang) who is in and out of coma. Read more
Published on 15 Jun 2010 by Anistitis
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