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Book Reviews Title Speaking
With The Angel Fiction-Net
Rating Buy It
From Amazon.co.uk - BUY
NOW! Cover
Story Hear the Prime
Minister explain to the House why he did a runner
from Greenford Park service station and hitched a
lift with a fifteen-year-old girl, as imagined by
Robert Harris. Listen to someone who has a small
hostile creature in his room, as told by Roddy
Doyle. Twelve voices,
twelve completely new stories, narrated by twelve
different characters. And all written by twelve of
the most exciting and popular writers
around. This sparkling
collection has been put together by bestselling
novelist Nick Hornby, who also contributes in an
introduction about TreeHouse, an organization that
offers a unique and pioneering approach to the
education of children with autism. £1 will go
to the TreeHouse with every copy sold of 'Speaking
with the Angel'. We
Say The good thing
about a collection like this is that it's a real
mixed bag. The contributors are as follows: Robert
Harris, Melissa Bank, Giles Smith, Patrick Marber,
Colin Firth, Zadie Smith, Nick Hornby, Dave Eggers,
Helen Fielding, Roddy Doyle, Irvine Welsh and John
O' Farrell. You can see straight away that some of
those names carry immediate expectations with them
and others are more of an unknown quantity. It was
enjoyable to work my way through and experience all
of these different perspectives. Of course, some of
the stories will communicate to you better than
others and some you might not like at all. But it's
the process of discovering which ones that's the
fun part. For me, the most
outstanding story was Roddy Doyle's. Entitled 'The
Slave', it has a very simple premise - a working
class man comes downstairs one morning to find a
dead rat on his kitchen floor. His response to the
situation and the way in which it changes his
routine and almost affects his sanity is totally
convincing. As far as I'm concerned, this is a
perfect short story - it has a strong central voice
and a theme that is dealt with coherently but
concisely. Other high points
include, 'Last Requests' by Giles Smith (a subtle
but horrifying tale about a woman who cooks meals
for death row prisoners), 'Luckybitch' by Helen
Fielding (features a strong female character
suffering an undignified lapse into old age) and
'NippleJesus' by Nick Hornby (an exploration of one
man's experience in the controversial world of
modern art). But be warned, the Irvine Welsh story,
('Catholic Guilt - You Know You Love It'), is not
for the faint-hearted. He is as provocative as
ever. 'Speaking with
the Angel' is worth a look, purely for the
experience of reading so many different styles all
in one handy package. The fact that proceeds from
the sale of the book go to charity is a bonus; but
in truth, the stories would justify a purchase
regardless of this. Review by: Rachel
Taylor |
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