The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman (Penguin Modern Classics) - Softcover

Carter, Angela

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0141192399 ISBN 13: 9780141192390

Publisher: Penguin Classics, 2011

Synopsis

Desiderio, an employee of the city under a bizarre reality attack from Doctor Hoffman's mysterious machines, has fallen in love with Albertina, the Doctor's daughter. But Albertina, a beautiful woman made of glass, seems only to appear to him in his dreams. Meeting on his adventures a host of cannibals, centaurs and acrobats, Desiderio must battle against unreality and the warping of time and space to be with her, as the Doctor reduces Desiderio's city to a chaotic state of emergency - one ridden with madness, crime and sexual excess.A satirical tale of magic and sex, The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman is a dazzling quest for truth, love and identity.

About this title

Review:

'One of the most original, radical and stylish fiction writers of the twentieth century' (Independent)

She belonged at the centre of the literature of her time (Salman Rushdie New York Times)

From the Back Cover:

The 1970s was a decade of anger and discontent. Britain endured power cuts and strikes. America pulled out of Vietnam and saw its President resign from office. Feminism and face lifts vied for women's hearts (and minds). And for many, prog rock, punk and disco weren't just music but ways of life.

Angela Carter's The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman, was published in 1972, and has been hailed as one of the finest surrealist novels in the language. In this magical adventure Desiderio is stricken with love for Albertina, a woman he sees only in his dreams. He must also battle against Doctor Hoffman and his mysterious machines, as they bend time and space to turn Desiderio's city into a nightmare of lust, insanity and crime. But the evil Doctor is also Albertina's father ...

With a new introduction by Ali Smith

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classics
• Publication date: 2011
• ISBN 10: 0141192399
• ISBN 13: 9780141192390
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 288