Singapore just before the Japanese invasion in the Second World War: the Blackett family's prosperous world of tennis parties, cocktails and deferential servants seems unchanging. But it is poised on the edge of the abyss: This is the eve of the Fall of Singapore and, as we know, of much else besides. Not only the Blacketts, their friends and enemies, but many individuals are caught up in the events. Singapore at this historical watershed has never been so faithfully and passionately recreated.
The Singapore Grip
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Book Description
A classic novel by a Booker Prize-winning author.
About the Author
J.G. Farrell was born in Liverpool in 1935 and spent a good deal of his life abroad, including periods in France and Ireland, where he spent much of his childhood, and a prolonged visit to the Far East to research the background for this novel. Among his novels, TROUBLES won the Faber Memorial Prize in 1970 and the Lost Man Booker prize in 2010 and THE SIEGE OF KRISHNAPUR won the Booker Prize in 1973. He died in 1979.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
By Ibrahim Ali
Format:Paperback
Another wonderful book by Farrell. This time we are Singapore upon whose shores the Second World War is about to reach. We see the usual collection of eccentric colonials and witness their social dealings. Whilst the rest of the Empire battled the Germans and Japanese, in Singapore fortunes are to be made and daughters to be married off. Farrell has created a wonderful host of characters who often discuss the weightiest of matters in the most perilous situations. Thus not only are we treated to reading about them putting out incendiary bombs but we have them discussing the betterment of man whilst they do it. As with Farrell's other novels the book is wonderfully funny, this one is however tinged with sadness. The injustice of Empire is more apparent and the motives of the people whose stories we witness are much crasser than in his other books. This, as with all of Farrell's books is a must read.
27 of 28 people found the following review helpful
By A Customer
Format:Paperback
I don't recognise the book that Michael Kalk describes. Every one of Farrell's characters comes to life on the page. And though the book is long, it's never boring - it immerses you in colonial Singapore on the cusp of the Japanese invasion. As usual with Farrell, the narrative is threaded through with dark humour - right down to the title. When you find out what 'Singapore grip' means, you'll think twice about asking for it by name at your local bookshop.
9 of 9 people found the following review helpful
By M. J. Mooney
Format:Paperback
This was much more of an epic than I expected. Nearest comparison I can think of is Olivia Manning's "Fortunes Of War" (Balkan and Levant trilogies), with a dash of Paul Scott (Raj quartet) and Evelyn Waugh (Sword Of Honour).
By turns serious and satirical, it recounts the inexorable decline of the ex-pat British colonial community in Malaya, as the imperial Japanese storm gathers, bursts, and ultimately destroys their apparently invunerable world of privilege.
Although parts of the book are slow (but often funny), it is never less than absorbing, and builds to a gripping and moving climax, which I found utterly unputdownable.
Sadly, this was to be Farrell's last book, as he died shortly after completing it.
By turns serious and satirical, it recounts the inexorable decline of the ex-pat British colonial community in Malaya, as the imperial Japanese storm gathers, bursts, and ultimately destroys their apparently invunerable world of privilege.
Although parts of the book are slow (but often funny), it is never less than absorbing, and builds to a gripping and moving climax, which I found utterly unputdownable.
Sadly, this was to be Farrell's last book, as he died shortly after completing it.
27 of 30 people found the following review helpful
By Tinfoilhat
Format:Paperback
15 August 2000
I SIMPLY CANNOT RECOMMEND THIS WONDERFUL STORY HIGHLY ENOUGH. I bought it purely on 'spec' as I was hunting around Amazon for any book on Singapore or the Far East (I was in a nostalgic mood for the exotic orient - probably our lousy summer weather here in the Uk did it). This book turned out to be an absolute treasure - Singapore in the last months before the fall to the Japanese is brought to life with remarkable vividness and the most loving detail. This is a truly compelling tale, by turns deeply poignant, hilarious, slap-stick, and bitterly ironic. Draped everywhere are succulent vignettes of colonial life and English eccentricity, all set against the dramatic, vast, dark tableau of the looming war in South-east Asia. It is a very clever and cleverly told story too. But the characters are the real strength here - it is a real ensemble piece, with a large and varied cast of 'players', and they are all so fascinating and three-dimensional you will find yourself completely captivated as you follow their progress and adventures, and watch them interact. An atmospheric, evocative, pungent, compelling, spell-binding book, perfect for tucking up in bed with on a cold rainy night, which will utterly absorb you into its streets and settings. I EXHORT YOU to order this book. J.G. Farrell was unknown to me before I stumbled across this book here at Amazon, and now I shall be ordering a couple more of his books next. The Singapore Grip is supposedly one of three books by Farrell referred to by critics as Farrell's 'Empire Trilogy' - guess what I'm ordering next!
10 of 11 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
"Strong nations will always take advantage of the weak if they can do so with impunity....Their own interests will be served."
18 Jan 2010
Format:Paperback
When the Japanese invaded China in 1937 and French Indo-China in 1941, the handwriting was on the wall for the colony of Singapore, one of Great Britain's most important military and economic centers. Hubris, and the sense that their military power was vastly superior to any other in the world, however, led to Britain's lack of military preparedness and the astonishingly quick takeover of Malaya and Singapore by the Japanese in 1942, handing the British what Winston Churchill called "the worst disaster and largest capitulation in British history." Author J. G. Farrell recreates these traumatic days in Singapore as the final novel in his "Empire Trilogy," which, like Troubles and The Siege of Krishnapur, combines Farrell's cynicism, black humor, and sense of absurdity with his uncompromising honesty about colonialism--Britain's greed, its colonial "mission," and its cruelty toward its "subjects."
The venerable Singapore merchant firm of Blackett and Webb and its principals come vibrantly alive here as they deal with continuing strikes, unrest in rural areas, challenges to the government by the communists, and an influx of immigrants from other countries. The outbreak of war in Europe has made the demand for Blackett and Webb's rubber supplies a high priority for Britain's military cars and planes, and Blackett and Webb are poised to capitalize by manipulating prices, withholding product, and evading the law. Associating with generals, the leaders of society, and local governors, the company's representatives are busy planning an elaborate jubilee celebration. Even as the Japanese are attacking from the north, Walter Blackett continues with the planned celebration.... Read more ›
The venerable Singapore merchant firm of Blackett and Webb and its principals come vibrantly alive here as they deal with continuing strikes, unrest in rural areas, challenges to the government by the communists, and an influx of immigrants from other countries. The outbreak of war in Europe has made the demand for Blackett and Webb's rubber supplies a high priority for Britain's military cars and planes, and Blackett and Webb are poised to capitalize by manipulating prices, withholding product, and evading the law. Associating with generals, the leaders of society, and local governors, the company's representatives are busy planning an elaborate jubilee celebration. Even as the Japanese are attacking from the north, Walter Blackett continues with the planned celebration.... Read more ›
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
A splendidly sprawling novel
The one drawback of this book is that the author does not wear his research lightly. However, this turns into an advantage as it extends the reader's time reading this wonderful... Read more
Published 3 months ago by Cole Davis
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful book.
What an enjoyable and informative book! Gives a real insight into another time and a world that doesn't exist anymore. Read more
Published 3 months ago by dw1000
3.0 out of 5 stars
Singapore grip???????????
Not my sort of book I am afraid- far too much detail about how guns or water pumps and numerous other pieces of equipment operate; Also lots of military and economic strategy. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Kitty
3.0 out of 5 stars
Historically interesting, but slow
Having lived in Singapore for a few years just less than a decade after the events related in the book I found Farrell's interpretation of the history of these times quite... Read more
Published 9 months ago by Fogorig
5.0 out of 5 stars
Wonderful
Having previously enjoyed both Troubles and the Siege of Krisnapur I was not disappointed by this wonderful recreation of Singapore in the days leading up to the invasion by Japan. Read more
Published 10 months ago by Dr. J. H. Coyne
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another great novel
Superb evocation of a bygone age, with the usual dotty characters playing out their individual problems against a world falling apart. Read more
Published 14 months ago by Mr R J Neilson
4.0 out of 5 stars
An excellent read
An engrossing book, if a little long-winded from time to time. This was probably due to the author's enthusiasm, no to be doubted, having got the better of him. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Bookish
5.0 out of 5 stars
A seriously comic tragedy--the 1942 fall of Singapore
A really fine novel by the superb British writer, J.G. Farrell. I got this title because of the overwhelmingly favorable Amazon reviews (hats off to those who praised the book in... Read more
Published 20 months ago by Blue in Washington
2.0 out of 5 stars
Singapore kip zzzzz
Story of rich rubber baron family, sub plots of arranged marriages to ensure company's survival, young man stepping out in the world, price of rubber, Japanese invasion. Read more
Published on 24 May 2011 by T.
5.0 out of 5 stars
A remarkable and beautiful work
This is a substantial and remarkable book in which Farrell documents the colonial years just before, and during the Japanese invasion of Singapore. Read more
Published on 6 Mar 2011 by Tony Buckley
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