Travel Arrangements: Amazon.co.uk: M. John Harrison: Books

Amazon.co.uk Review

Having previously published eight novels and three collections of stories, M. John Harrison's latest collection, Travel Arrangements, confirms the abilities of a writer of singular subtlety and intelligence; that he is not more celebrated may in part be due to the tendency of writers to be categorised by genre. The author's previous books have often been labelled as science-fiction or fantasy but the stories gathered here demonstrate the limitations of such categories. Harrison's writing balances disquietingly on the edge of realism and careful descriptions of quotidian life and place, shifting into intimations of worlds of feeling and states of mind briefly glimpsed. Most striking is his ability to unnerve and disturb with the most economical of means, without need for overt passages of terror or excess. If there is the sensibility of genre here, it is that of the everyday observed by an eye accustomed to strangeness--the science-fiction world applied to the dark terrains of sexuality, desire, travel and one's own neighbourhood. A woman executing her brother's will, anatomies of brief relationships, a detective in search of a serial killer, a young man who uses the Tarot to determine and direct random journeys--all hint at the unfathomable complexity of the world in which we live. However, this capacity for observation is not without humour, for in the story "Black Houses" we get a description of the narrator's neighbours--landed gentry fallen on hard times:

Lord Arquiss was 77. He kept a Volvo the colour of a cheap brogue, and a 50-year-old ex-ballerina who claimed to be his wife. From the disaster they had salvaged an amazing 3rd Reich-style bed, the elongated black wooden posts of which were capped with vast polished eagles like lecterns. Every night you could see the two of them sitting up in this thing like two bull terriers in a pram.

Highly praised by writers such as Iain Banks and the late Angela Carter, M. John Harrison's elegant, uneasy fictions deserve our attention. --Burhan Tufail --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Review

‘Harrison’s new collection is wonderfully haunting. Its subject is the fragility of the “real world” and how it is shattered by unmotivated violence, unusual belief-systems, madness, dreams and death. His stories are full of insight and extraordinary imagery.’ The Times

‘Harrison presents an England where the dead offer you cups of tea, Soho couples wear axes in their heads as a fashion statement and the roads are deserted enough for lonely men to race cars down the M4.’ Guardian

‘Deceptively light, crushingly assured… What impresses throughout is how spot-on Harrison is: emotionally and in the atmosphere he creates… reminiscent of Borges.’ Time Out

‘The sense of place is everything in these stories… Harrison is a visionary writer who deserves far greater recognition.’ Times Literary Supplement

From the reviews of previous books:
‘Like all good literature, Harrison’s stories are worth reading again and again: the more you read, the more you understand.’ IAIN BANKS

‘[The Ice Monkey] puts him in the company of Ian McEwan and Peter Carey, but he is grittier than Carey and wittier than McEwan.’ TLS

‘Imagine Reservoir Dogs scripted by Alan Bennett and you will have some idea of the flavour.’ The Times

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

Good, but not the place to start with this author 28 July 2000

By "pbowes9116"

Format:Hardcover

A collection of short stories written between 1983 and 2000, all of which have appeared elsewhere, though in a diverse range of publications (most of them were new to me). Readers familar with M. John Harrison's work will not be disappointed by the quality of this collection, but admirers may be a little disquieted by the fact that that the earlier stories seem superior to the later (some of which are mere shards: in the manner of the later novels but lacking the substance).

More seriously, there is little here to surprise. One of the joys of this author's work has been his mutation from 'New Worlds' clone (author of the Ballardian 'The Committed Men' and the early short story collection 'The Machine in Shaft Ten' to distinctive fantasist in the 'Viriconium' sequence, and then to mainstream author of real achievement. It is hard to imagine that the same writer could have been responsible for 'The Centauri Device', 'A Storm of Wings', 'Climbers', and 'The Course of the Heart', all excellent and highly recommendable. 'Travel Arrangements' by contrast is very much a sampler rather than an advance, and there is a sense that the best of the author's writing in this later vein has appeared elsewhere: notably in the earlier collection 'The Ice Monkey', whose best story, 'Egnaro', anticipates much of the present collection's imagery and tone of voice.

However, Harrison's standard remains high, and no reader of 'Travel Arrangements' is likely to be disappointed. It is a remarkably unified collection considering the extended period of composition, and fails only by comparison with the best of his earlier achievements.

I consider Harrison to be one of the most underrated writers of his generation, and I strongly recommend anyone interested in English fiction of high quality to investigate further. In particular, readers who habitually avoid fantasy and science fiction because of the genre's juvenile associations should be aware that Harrison more than most is traduced by his earlier reputation in those fields. He is one of a small number of English writers (I would add the names of Iain Sinclair, Robert Holdstock, Mary Gentle and Haydn Middleton) who are extending the legacy of the classic English fantasists while avoiding the traps of genre cliche. Harrison is also one of the few contemporary writers whose feeling for English provincial life rings true. Why his name is not mentioned more frequently alongside those of Ballard and Angela Carter (and above that of of Ian McEwan, as on the jacket of 'Travel Arrangements') escapes me. I await his next novel with anticipation.

Three stars by Mr. Harrison's exacting standards: four by comparison with almost everything else this year.

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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

Fine writing. One of Moorcock's and Sinclair's few peers. 4 Oct 2000

By A Customer

Format:Paperback

Travel Arrangements is a showcase of M.John Harrison's short fiction, so characteristic as to hit you at once both with its feel for language and the bleak originality of its vision. There are very few writers to match Moorcock and Sinclair at their best, few who have, since J.G.Ballard (one of Harrison's influences) produced such influential work. This would be a great introduction for someone who hasn't read Harrison before, but like Moorcock and Sinclair he can move quite readily from tragedy to irony, from spare, harsh landscape to the lush streets of Viriconium (whose tales have just been reissued) and the baroque outer space as conceived by Bach and Bosch of The Centauri Device. Harrison is nothing but quality, and this is refined, elegant Harrison at his quietly swaggering best.

One our best contemporary writers shows us his stuff 1 Jun 2000

A collection of short stories from M.John Harrison is so rare that the excitement one feels at finding a new one is a bit like coming across the lost treasure of Monte Cristo. I remain astonished that this writer isn't celebrated as one of our greatest contemporary masters of prose. His subject matter and his style are so far ahead of the rest that to read, for instance, Martin Amis after him, makes you realise just how good he is. A precision, an ability to carry more in a line than most writers can carry in a novel, a wonderful range of characters and subject matter that goes deeper and subtly further than anything you'll find. In a just world, M.John Harrison would be recognised as one of Stevenson's greatest successors -- not for his stories, which are pretty different, but for the precision of his style. If you want your faith in English fiction restored, buy this book!