What strange secret made rich, beautiful, tempestuous Bella Baxter irresistible to the poor Scottish medical student Archie McCandless? Was it her mysterious origin in the home of his monstrous friend Godwin Baxter, the genius whose voice could perforate eardrums? This story of true love and scientific daring whirls the reader from the private operating-theatres of late-Victorian Glasgow through aristocratic casinos, low-life Alexandria and a Parisian bordello, reaching an interrupted climax in a Scottish church.
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"It wouldn't be an exaggeration to hail Alasdair Gray as one of Scotlands greatest living novelists." -- The List Festival Guide 9-15th August 2001
"The greatest Scottish novelist since Sir Walter Scott" -- Anthony Burgess
'A marvellous, endearing book ... a virtuoso feat of literary ventriloquism' -- New Statesman and Society
'The greatest Scottish novelist since Sir Walter Scott' -- Anthony Burgess
'This work of inspired lunacy effectively skewers class snobbery, British imperialism, prudishness and the tenets of received wisdom' -- Publishers Weekly
'Witty and delightfully written' -- New York Times Book Review
"The greatest Scottish novelist since Sir Walter Scott" -- Anthony Burgess
'A marvellous, endearing book ... a virtuoso feat of literary ventriloquism' -- New Statesman and Society
'The greatest Scottish novelist since Sir Walter Scott' -- Anthony Burgess
'This work of inspired lunacy effectively skewers class snobbery, British imperialism, prudishness and the tenets of received wisdom' -- Publishers Weekly
'Witty and delightfully written' -- New York Times Book Review
About the Author
Alasdair Gray won the the Whitbread and Guardian Awards for POOR THINGS. He is also the author of THE BOOK OF PREFACES, the story-collection, TEN TALES TALL AND TRUE, and the groundbreaking modern classic, LANARK.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
21 of 23 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
Fascinating, intelligent and entertaining. These are just some of the conclusions that I have come to in the year since I first read Poor Things. Is Baxter a man or a creation himself?Why does he have such bizarre eating habits? Similarly, is Bella quite the woman she believes herself to be? What happened to her daughter? Why can she not write using vowels? How does she learn to relate to the world around her? This is a very clever re-write of Shelly's Frankenstein, itself a text that is very concerned with issues of language and how we aquire it.That, however, is not all it is. It's also a really good romp around such key areas of examination such as class divide,feminist issues and Empire in the Victorian world of the Industrial Revolution .You be the detective sifting through the authors 'found' collection of journals and letters ( a classic Victorian writing device). Enjoy the artwork and take time afterwards to ponder what you have read. How can you ignore a novel in which the main female character (Bella) turns a noted philanderer into a Bible-bashing lunatic as a result of her insatiable nymphomania? I'm still thinking about what I've read and that doesn't happen often with me. A modern classic!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
By Scarmoge
Format:Paperback
This is a kooky story, told with warmth and charm. Gray's imagination is never less than fecund and highly flavoured, his characters are so real you can smell them. Another reviewer mentioned that there's a distinct flavour of Scot, but it doesn't get in the way of the text so don't let it put you off. He reminds me of Anthony Burgess in terms of his sense of fun, confidence and style, and the way he will make a story into something original and lovely of his own. Enjoy the ride.
By Blagoslava
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Lovable characters, intriguing plot, unusual topic - what else do you want for a good read? One of the very few recent uni reads I have actually really enjoyed.
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4.6 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
Enjoyable fictional novel in hardback volume of impressive quality...
Very well written political novel , with lots of intertexual references to other Scottish novels, history & culture ; wrapped up in a reasonable ,but deliberately derivative, plot.
Published 1 month ago by Alasdair N Sharp
4.0 out of 5 stars
Had to keep reading.
This is a strange little book. Bizarre characters and an even more bizarre plotline, would on most occasions be a big turnoff for me. Read more
Published 19 months ago by JanG
5.0 out of 5 stars
Poor Things
This book is totally different to what I normally read but having picked it up and read a few pages in an office I had to keep reading. Poor Things
Published on 11 April 2011 by Joan Anderson
4.0 out of 5 stars
A RELATIVELY CHALLENGING NOVEL, BUT QUIRKY AND ENTERTAINING
unusual book. Interesting and informative, albeit silly at times. Would be surprised if the author had not been influenced by Sterne's Tristram Shandy.
Published on 5 Jan 2011 by Educated Hausfrau
5.0 out of 5 stars
Intriguing, titillating and impressive
Behind a front of Victorian correctness is a book of abandon and excess, both in its content and its style. Read more
Published on 16 Mar 2010 by Ignorant Bystander
4.0 out of 5 stars
Quality writing, exceptional visual presentation
As usual with Gray, the design is superlative.
Published on 14 May 2000
1.0 out of 5 stars
Yuck!
Highly pretentious! A ridiculously stupid main character set within an even stupider plot! This novel takes itself too seriously from cover to cover (and, indeed, even the cover... Read more
Published on 28 April 2000
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