A QUESTION OF ATTRACTION is the story of Brian, a somewhat ungainly youth going to university in England in the bleak mid-80s. Brian hopes redefine himself at school and eagerly (in appealingly 1st person) tells us all the thing he'd like to say to people in intellectual arguments ("define your terms")
The plot revolves around Brian's efforts to appear on the popular UNIVERSITY CHALLENGE quiz show and to have his beautiful teammate ALice fall in love with him. Alice, a sort of rich socialist, is somewhat idealized but still very appealing, and she leades Brian on through almost the books entire length. Meanwhile, Brian is coping with beer-making roommates, dealing with the… Read more
Robert Wilson's INSTRUMENTS OF DARKNESS is the first in a series of mysteries set in Africa featuring a white British character named Bruce Medway. Medway does odd jobs for a collection of eccentric Africans operating on both sides of the law. The plot is so baroque as to be almost incomprehensible, but what's really going on is lots of atmosphere. Wilson knows Africa and he gets the details right....Much darker than the No. 1 Detective Agency books, will appeal to fans of Le Carre, Graham Greene, etc.....Funny and exciting, lively 1st person narration.....recommended....
Joe, the product of a divorced home in Long Island, just wants to fit in. He thinks he's found niche when he discovers punk rock, and a group of like minded friends at his new private school, but he really finds the love of his life when he hears the Smiths.
HOW SOON IS NEVER is the story of how Joe stumbles through life looking for something he thinks only the Smiths can give him. By the time he reaches 30, he's a hard drinking music writer who wants to reunite the Smiths with the help of Miki, the woman he loves.
The second half of the book is bit labored, including somewhat redundant cameos by 3/4 of the Smiths, and the life lesson can be seen a mile away, but there's enough… Read more
