Lionel Asbo: State of England - Hardcover

Amis, Martin

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0307958086 ISBN 13: 9780307958082

Publisher: Alfred a Knopf Inc, 2012

Synopsis

A savage, funny, and mysteriously poignant saga by a renowned author at the height of his powers.

Lionel Asbo, a terrifying yet weirdly loyal thug (self-named after England's notorious Anti-Social Behaviour Order), has always looked out for his ward and nephew, the orphaned Desmond Pepperdine. He provides him with fatherly career advice (always carry a knife, for example) and is determined they should share the joys of pit bulls (fed with lots of Tabasco sauce), Internet porn, and all manner of more serious criminality. Des, on the other hand, desires nothing more than books to read and a girl to love (and to protect a family secret that could be the death of him). But just as he begins to lead a gentler, healthier life, his uncle—once again in a London prison—wins £140 million in the lottery and upon his release hires a public relations firm and begins dating a cannily ambitious topless model and “poet.” Strangely, however, Lionel's true nature remains uncompromised while his problems, and therefore also Desmond's, seem only to multiply.

About this title

Review:

"Martin Amis's Lionel Asbo made me laugh (as any novel driven by incestuous relations with your grandmother should) and then feel ashamed for that laughter (as any novel driven by incestuous relations with your grandmother should)." -- James Kidd Independent "It's a Big Mac made from filet mignon... It is a book of lovehate. It is a powershake. And the biggest joy is that Amis seems to find himself (and finds us, by extension) loving the thing he loathes... So let's give thanks that Martin Amis was bad enough and brave enough to write it" -- Nicola Barker Observer "This is still a Martin Amis novel, full of tense, fugitive moments...had me roaring with laughter." -- DJ Taylor Independent "Being an Amis novel it's not without the odd good joke, and he is, of course, incapable of writing and inelegant line. (It's almost as if he alone can sense both the golden ratio of a sentence, and its perfect rhythm: it's like he's Michelangelo and Keith Moon)." -- David Annand Sunday Telegraph "As soon as you begin this novel, it is clear that Amis does indeed love his monstrous invention, Lionel Asbo. Lionel is a fantastic brute... Amis's delight in the incorrigible is genuinely Dickensian... This is a verbally inventive comedy...to be enjoyed in the same spirit as Little Britain... It's a hoot." -- David Sexton Evening Standard

Book Description:

A modern fairytale from one of the world's great writers

About this edition

• Publisher: Alfred a Knopf Inc
• Publication date: 2012
• ISBN 10: 0307958086
• ISBN 13: 9780307958082
• Binding: Hardcover
• Number of pages: 255