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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
7 of 8 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Stephen Clayton's debut novel, The Art Of Being Dead, is a story that underlines how by doing very little in life, you can still be drawn into anarchy, shame and murder. You would expect with such an absorbing opening line, and blurb tease as "Can you become a murderer by doing nothing?", that the book will be subversive, dark and broody. You'd be mistaken; The Art of Being Dead is much more.
Very cool book that works on many different levels. Stephen Clayton is definitely someone to look out for in the future, and if you don't already have a copy of this book, buy one!
Very cool book that works on many different levels. Stephen Clayton is definitely someone to look out for in the future, and if you don't already have a copy of this book, buy one!
3 of 4 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is a complex and brilliant novel: uncomfortable, uncomprising, and beautifully written.
Clayton's understanding of human nature is highly evolved. I read the second half in a few hours and hardly blinked.
Clayton's understanding of human nature is highly evolved. I read the second half in a few hours and hardly blinked.
Format:Paperback
Having just finished reading this novel, I shall be re-reading it almost immediately. It really is that good, and that complex that it merits a second look, or a third, a fourth... Comparisons that I've seen with Iain Banks' 'The Wasp Factory' are well deserved, and the tone of the book is indeed dark. I'd add that Stephen Clayton's examination of what it is to be alive and relate to other people (and how we perceive these relationships) is as acute as Bret Easton Ellis' in 'American Psycho'. For me, this book is perhaps even more interesting, as so often you identify your own behaviours in those of the characters. It's disturbing; not for any phsyical acts of violence as with the two novels mentioned above, but for how closely it holds a mirror to ourselves. Compelling, clever and absolutely worth your time. *****
Most Recent Customer Reviews
Addictive Read
Initially, I confess, I felt it unlikely I was going to enjoy this disturbing, melancholy story set in a cold and bleak black and white world. Read more
Published on 19 Jan 2009 by Mr. P. Brooke
A Study in Appeasement
This is a profound exploration of the nature of appeasement, told as the story of the hypnotising experiences of the main character, Jonathan. Read more
Published on 23 Nov 2008 by P. Wagstaff
Fascinating, challenging, intense
Reading Stephen Clayton's book, The Art of Being Dead, one enters the world of Jonathan and a group of companions as they respond to violent events in ways that challenge... Read more
Published on 15 Oct 2008 by M.L.A.
Best read intwo years
The best book I've read in years. Clayton moves between monochrome and colour with the literary palette of a Francis Bacon. Read more
Published on 15 Sep 2008 by KL Duffy
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