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Gabriel Josipovici
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Only Joking Paperback – 10 Sept. 2010

by Gabriel Josipovici (Author)
5.0 out of 5 stars 3 ratings
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I do not think there is any writer working in English at present who is more subtly inventive or more original than Gabriel Josipovici.
Tales from the Reading Room

You know what the secret of being a good clown is, Elspeth? he asks.
No, she says. You ve told me but I ve forgotten.,br. Innocence, Elspeth, he says. A clown is innocent. He is innocent because he has not been born into our world. He is innocent, Elspeth, because he has not been born at all.

Alphonse, an accordion-playing ex-clown, is hired by the Baron to spy on his wife, for whom, unknown to the Baron, he is already working. The intricate shadow-play that ensues moves at a pace that quickly blurs the distinctions between jokes and lies, art and evidence, until with a final tug at the strings the characters barons, clowns, art students, art collectors, film-makers, restaurateurs are brought into unexpected alignment with their several objects of desire.

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  1. Print length
    166 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    CB Editions
  4. Publication date
    10 Sept. 2010
  5. ISBN-10
    0956107362
  6. ISBN-13
    978-0956107367
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Product description

Review

`Only Joking has the light heart which can be revealed at the further end of a literary career . . . The great success of Josipovici's technique here is that not only is the effect like that of watching something between an Ealing comedy and a very sparky and accessible French nouvelle vague film, but it also sharpens our own responses to the layers of deceit going on . . . It is a complete pleasure.' --Nicholas Lezard, Guardian

About the Author

Gabriel Josipovici was born in Nice in 1940 and lived in Egypt from 1945 to 1956, when he came to the UK. He read English at Oxford and taught at the University of Sussex from 1963 to 1996. His work includes fiction, drama and criticism, and has been widely translated.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ CB Editions
  • Publication date ‏ : ‎ 10 Sept. 2010
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Print length ‏ : ‎ 166 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0956107362
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0956107367
  • Item weight ‏ : ‎ 200 g
  • Best Sellers Rank: 1,819,469 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • Customer reviews:
    5.0 out of 5 stars 3 ratings

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Gabriel Josipovici

Gabriel Josipovici

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Top reviews from United Kingdom

  • E. Salmon
    5.0 out of 5 stars A lot more than only joking ...
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 6 January 2013
    Well ... having read Infinity, I could barely wait to read this one.

    On the recommendation of his chauffeur cum factotum aptly named Felix, a wealthy elderly man, known as the Baron but who isn't in fact one - things that are not quite what they seem thread through the novel - employs a charming rogue to shadow his wife whom he suspects of adultery. Unknown to the Baron, Felix recommends the same man to the Baron's wife who wants the fellow to kill her pregnant daughter-in-law so as to prevent the Baron from dispossessing her in favour of the newly-born. A zippy comedy of errors ensues, narrated chiefly through dialogue. And it ends as a first class comedy of this kind should. Clever, hilarious, and impeccably crafted. In my opinion Gabriel Josipovici is one of the best writers in English today!
    One person found this helpful
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  • vm
    5.0 out of 5 stars Funny and intelligent
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 28 December 2010
    This clever novella, written almost entirely in dialogue, offers an amusing range of stock characters and ingenious plot machinations. The text's playfulness, its refusal to take itself seriously, its moments of occasional menace and its humour are truly impressive. This is the writing for our time, sharp and witty: a postmodernist narrative in the best sense of the word.
    6 people found this helpful
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