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Pincher Martin [Paperback]

William Golding (Author)
3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
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Book Description

Publication Date: 7 April 2005

Drowning in the freezing North Atlantic, Christopher Hadley Martin, temporary lieutenant, happens upon a grotesque rock, an island that appears only on weather charts. To drink there is a pool of rain water; to eat there are weeds and sea-anemones. Through the long hours with only himself to talk to, Martin must try to assemble the truth of his fate, piece by terrible piece.

From the author of Lord of the Flies, Pincher Martin is a terrifying and unforgettable journey into one man's mind.

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Product details

  • Paperback: 208 pages
  • Publisher: Faber and Faber; New Ed edition (7 April 2005)
  • Language: English
  • ISBN-10: 0571225454
  • ISBN-13: 978-0571225453
  • Product Dimensions: 12.6 x 19.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
  • Amazon Bestsellers Rank: 122,216 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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William Golding
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Product Description

About the Author

William Golding was born in Cornwall in 1911 and was educated at Marlborough Grammar School and at Brasenose College, Oxford. Before he became a schoolmaster he was an actor, a lecturer, a small-boat sailor and a musician. A now rare volume, Poems, appeared in 1934. In 1940 he joined the Royal Navy and saw action against battleships, and also took part in the pursuit of the Bismarck. He finished the war as a Lieutenant in command of a rocket ship, which was off the French coast for the D-Day invasion, and later at the island of Walcheren. After the war he returned to Bishop Wordsworth's School in Salisbury and was there when his first novel, Lord of the Flies, was published in 1954. He gave up teaching in 1961. Lord of the Flies was filmed by Peter Brook in 1963. Golding listed his hobbies as music, chess, sailing, archaeology and classical Greek (which he taught himself). Many of these subjects appear in his essay collections The Hot Gates and A Moving Target. He won the Booker Prize for his novel Rites of Passage in 1980, and was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1983. He was knighted in 1988. He died at his home in the summer of 1993. The Double Tongue, a novel left in draft at his death, was published in June 1995.
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He was struggling in every direction, he was the centre of the writhing and kicking knot of his own body. Read the first page
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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews
10 of 10 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A difficult read but worth the effort. 14 Nov 2009
By P. Ruffle
Format:Paperback
Golding does not shy away from the fact that his title character Christopher Martin is a louse.

Of the thousands of sailors stranded in Mid-Atlantic during World War 2 he was the one that deserved to be there.

He might even have wriggled out of conscription into the navy had any of the influential members of his circle chosen to speak up for him. The truth is that Martin had been such a pig in civilian life that most were heartily sick of him and were more than willing to wave him on his way.

All save perhaps his one true friend Nathaniel. The kind of man who would see the good in anyone, Nathaniel offers Martin warmth and friendship but is repaid by coldness and distain.

In a gesture of loyalty worthy of Beau Geste, Nathaniel also enlists in the navy and Golding contrives to have them serve aboard the same ship.

Alas this act of kindness effectively seals the ship's doom. Nathaniel has also won the heart of the girl Martin himself can only repulse. Martin's coldness for Nathaniel turns into the same kind of loathing that the rest of the world reserves for Martin.

It was Martin's watch on top that fateful day. Instead of paying attention to his watch, Martin's attention is fixed on Nathaniel. Martin has noticed Nathaniel has a habit of learning over a certain rail and he weighs up how he can cause the ship to manoeuvre to wash him overboard.

As a direct result of Martin's dereliction the Destroyer veers from its zigzag course just enough for a U boat to slam a torpedo into its side. The effect is devastating and the Destroyer sinks almost immediately taking all hands with it; although the force of the explosion casts Martin into the icy waters of the North Atlantic.

For the rest of the crew the struggle is over.... Read more ›
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6 of 6 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars Fever Dream 18 Aug 2001
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Naval officer Christopher Martin has fallen overboard in the Atlantic. He has no hope of rescue yet he refuses to die, his ego will not allow it. He finds refuge from drowning on a rock. There he has time to reflect on his life,and to delude himself, before he must face the terrifying truth of his situation.

To read this novel is like experiencing a vivid fever dream. It's with relief that you emerge to an ending that changes the whole meaning of what went before.

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars A Haunting Experience 6 Dec 1999
By nick.breeds@zurich.co.uk
Format:Paperback
A truly wonderful short novel which conveys the real sense of isolation and impending madness which befalls the poor shipwrecked sailor. Just when you think he's managing to survive, great streams of madness/consciousness spew forth from the pages and you are left in doubt as to the ultimate outcome of this haunting story. An excellent read, but not an uplifting one!
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3.0 out of 5 stars a rock hard read 3 Aug 2012
By mad_humanist
Format:Paperback
It's the second world war. A convoy of ships and naval escorts is sailing across the Atlantic. One of the naval ships is sunk, but a lone officer manages to reach a small rocky barely inhabitable island. From the beginning he applies his education, intelligence and shear will to live to the problems of survival and maximising chances of rescue. However the limited food, lack of shelter and depressing prospects of rescue wear down his sanity and sense of identity. As we peer into the geological strata of his subconscious we find that whilst on the surface he is likeable, sober and socialable young man, his inner world is a maggot-eat-maggot race to be first at all costs.

But that naive reading has sunk by the last sentence of the novel. You are much more likely to reach the other shore, if you have an inflatable lifebelt with you. For that I would suggest viewing it as an exploration of the tension between Promethean ideas of the human urge to survive and conquer nature with modern religious ideas.
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5.0 out of 5 stars Three of the best. 23 Nov 2011
By RR Waller TOP 500 REVIEWER
Format:Hardcover
Somewhere, on an irregular basis, a small, disillusioned group meets in a spit-and-sawdust pub to bemoan their judgement; comprising the twelve or so publishers who rejected "Lord of the Flies", their nostalgic yearnings for time machines continue until closing time when the, by now, bedraggled group slouches and slurs home. In contrast, Faber and now Guild Publishing have enjoyed the champagne benefits of "Flies" presence on the GCE/GCSE syllabi and "Pincher" on the Advanced Level lists since their publications, 1954 and 1956 respectively. The Booker Prize was captured by "Rites" in 1980, the first in his sea trilogy; in 1980, "The Times" ranked Golding third on their list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".

Guild Publication has now gained the rights from Faber to publish this Golding trilogy, some say his best three novels; it is an excellently produced compilation, sewn and glued sections with a Faber-type, minimalist dust-cover design. Not usually a fan of large editions of collected works in one volume, I like this - a sensible size, good quality paper and a readable text (11pt?). This edition could accompany students through three levels of examinations - a must for all aspiring students and "pushy" parents!

These three books exemplify Golding's style very clearly - allusions to classical literature, mythology and Christian symbolism, extensive vocabulary, stories pared to their essentials and plots which seem to deepen with each page. Another distinct Golding writing-style feature is his isolation of characters, preventing outside influences from affecting their situation and fates - two islands and a ship. This tightness of narrative structure focuses the plot's intensity with laser-like precision.

Recommended. Three of Golding's best for £1.50!
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