THU
7
OCT 7.00PM
Authors at Sauchiehall Street in October
ANNE MARLOWE
“How To Stop Time — Heroin from A-Z”
Anne Marlowe studied philosophy at Harvard, became a financial analyst a management consultant and rock
journalist. She also became addicted to herion. £1 (redeemable against price of book)
SAT
OCT 1—2PM MON
11
OCT 8.30 PM
VIC REEVES
“Sun Boiled Onions”
Today, come and meet the man himself when he will be signing copies of his new book.
SIGNWG EVENT
GLASGOW ARCHES IN ASSOCIATION WITH FUNCT 99 MARC ALMOND
“Tainted Life”
This long-awaited biography charts the much guesed-at life, loves and legend of MARC ALMOND. This evening, Marc will be frankly talking about his life and signing copies of his autobiography.
£4/£3 (£2 redeemable against price of book)
Available from Wztemone’: and Glasgow Archer 0141 221 9736
TUE
OCT 7.00 PM
MAX MILLIGAN
“Circles of Stone”
Stone circles remain one of the principle - and most accessible — fascinations of pre-history. Circles of Stone is Aubrey Burl’s new guide to the 80 most important sites in Britain and Ireland, illustrated by Max Milligan’s photographs.
FREE BUT HCKETED EVENT
THU
14
OCT 7.00 PM
MON
OCT 5.30 PM
REV. DR. DAVID PALMER
“Markham Matrix - A literary-Structural
Analysis of the Gospel of Mark”
This book challenges nearly all that we have ever been told about Mark’s Gospel: DAVID PALMER, Methodist Minister and Architect, presents this pio- neering work which offers a most detailed, investigative analysis of the Text. Reading and signing.
FREE BUT TICKETED EVENT
MICHEL PALIN
“Hemingway’s Travels” SIGNING SESSION
TUE
19
OCT 7.00 PM
PETER F. HAMILTON “Naked God”
The brilliant and long-awaited climax to his bestselling Night’s Dawn Trilogy and a sequel to The Reality Dyifimction and The neutroniom Alchemist.
PETER will be here this evening reading from, and signing copies of his new novel.
TICIG' TS £2/£1 (redeemable against cost of book)
FOR 'l‘ICKE'l‘S AND MORE INFORMATION
153—157 Sauchichall Street
M'twtowis
90141 332 9105
100 TIIE LIST 7-21 Oct 1999
books
reviews
CHILDHOOD DRAMA
Summer Sonata
Chaja Polak (Canongate £7.99) *i’t
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If you like stories about fucked-up little boys, then Summer Sonata is for you. Like The Wasp Factory and The Butcher Boy, Chaja Polak’s novella focuses on the closed world of a child, although this is an altogether gentler ride.
Awkward, adolescent Erwin lives with his passionate mother who is unsure who her son’s father is. Erwin's sole solace from the anxiety of adult sexuality is music lessons at his cello teacher's house where the old man lives with his wife. But even there, Erwin is assaulted by the kindly couple's unstable niece, who has been experiencing her own sex-related problems since the death of her husband.
Polak's prose is simple and direct. remaining within the partial perspective of the confused boy. If it reads slightly flat at times, that may be a result of the translation from Dutch into English. This is Polak's first but, hopefully, not her last. (MF)
SOCIAL COMEDY
lnconceivable Ben Elton (Bantam £15.99) *9: ‘k it
A fairly topical issue, cariacatural characters and a large dollop of satirical humour is a loose recipe for Mr Elton's novels, as fans of the stand-up turned author’s literary output will know. But formulaic doesn't necessarily mean worthless. Inconceivab/e sees the loquacious one tackling the subject of infertility with vigour and sensitivity.
The story centres on Lucy and Sam. an upwardly mobile, thirtysomething couple whose desires differ. She wants a baby while he, a frustrated BBC executive, wants to pen the next big British film. The ups and downs of their attempts to start a family are chronicled through letters written to themselves.
As well as putting forward cogent arguments both for and against having children, Elton manages to convince as both Lucy and Sam and he still finds time for narrative-interrupting digressions on scientists and the manners of waiting staff. Giggling out loud is virtually guaranteed. (DK)
PSYCHOLOGICAL THRILLER Every Dead Thing
John Connolly (Coronet £5.99) it ****
If Thomas Harris's latest offering left you baying for blood then this isjust the ticket to quench your thirst; as the title suggests, it's not short on grisly violence.
Our hero, former New York City cop Charlie ‘Bird' Parker, attracts more than his fair share of horrific crime. Opening with the graphic murders of his wife and child, this crime sets a rapidly paced sequence of gruesome events in motion as Parker searches for the killer.
A terrific cast of lowlifes and psychopaths includes not one but two prolific serial killers, multiple Mafiosi, hitmen, bent cops, perverts and pimps. This, combined with stunningly realised locations, meticulous research and desperately dark humour, makes Every Dead Thing a compulsive read and a potentially terrifying film.
Considering that this is Connolly's debut, it is also a tremendous achievement as he writes with self- assured intelligence and shows every sign of being a master in this genre. (CB)
CRIME THRILLER
Hard Time
Sara Paretsky (Hamish Hamilton £15.99) kirk
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Sara Paretsky unleashed her hard- boiled female detective with a conscience, V.l. Warshawski, hoping to change the face of the crime thriller. From her Chicago practice. Warshawski's adventures inherited the language of Runyan and the suspense of Chandler; but as Paretsky failed to move her plots forward, V.l.‘s charms began to pale beside the crowd of imitators. But after a bit of a rest, Paretsky has definitely rediscovered her form.
When she's got a strong issue to tackle, Paretsky's easy flowing style knits subtly in with the day-to-day mundanities of Warshawski's life. And in the treatment of women prisoners in American State prisons, she's got a device which leads Warshawski inexorably into her habitual danger and battling for the underdog against big business.
It makes for a page-turning read With all the hallmarks which made her such an entertaining writer in the first place. (TD)