Book Review
The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks
This is the first Iain Banks novel I ever read, and it may be the last.
It is on the recommended reading list for Year ll. I cannot imagine why.
It is necessary to invest a lot of reading time before the story begins to make sense. However, it is recommended, so presumably eventually it is worthwhile, so you carry on.
The characters, setting and circumstances are admittedly very, very odd, but the author enhances this deliberately by the choices he makes about how to unravel his story.
The nature of The Factory in the title is an enormous oddity which is not explained until well into the novel. It is the product of the mind of the main character who is clearly not normal, and is soon revealed to be severely, pointlessly, unnecessarily cruel. His nearest relatives, his only relatives, father and brother, appear to be the same. His father appears to be an ageing remnant of the 1960's free-thinking, hippy dippy, rule-breaking society-rejecting culture, and is so extreme as to be unconvincing. His brother, throughout most of the book, is in fact locked up; his escape is marked by an outbreak of sadistic cruelty to any living creature which is unfortunate enough to cross his path. If you're going to get immersed in a book, suspend disbelief, and believe in the characters and situation, you have to feel at least some sympathy, empathy, connection with at least one person in it. It would be very difficult to like or care about any character in this book. They are all gross.
The final episodes of the novel contain a brief attempt at an explanation which is so unlikely, incredible, and unbelievable as to be wholly inadequate and made me regret the time spent trying to unravel the whys and wherefores.
I asked two sixteen-year-olds to read this book. They could not make any sense of it at all, and were not interested enough to try and figure it out.
The most objectionable aspect of the book is the detailed description of completely unnecessary cruelty to animals. Rabbits, birds, bees, wasps, sheep, dogs - nothing is off limits.
I cannot imagine what this book is doing on a recommended reading list for Year 11. Is it an example of fine literature? No. Does it give insight into the human condition? No. Does it leave the reader with a feeling of having understood something of the world we live in? No, unless the reader lives in a medieval lunatic asylum.
I would not recommended this book to Year 11 kids, nor to adults. Especially if they are prone to nightmares, or are of a sensitive disposition.
This is the first Iain Banks novel I ever read, and it may be the last.
It is on the recommended reading list for Year ll. I cannot imagine why.
It is necessary to invest a lot of reading time before the story begins to make sense. However, it is recommended, so presumably eventually it is worthwhile, so you carry on.
The characters, setting and circumstances are admittedly very, very odd, but the author enhances this deliberately by the choices he makes about how to unravel his story.
The nature of The Factory in the title is an enormous oddity which is not explained until well into the novel. It is the product of the mind of the main character who is clearly not normal, and is soon revealed to be severely, pointlessly, unnecessarily cruel. His nearest relatives, his only relatives, father and brother, appear to be the same. His father appears to be an ageing remnant of the 1960's free-thinking, hippy dippy, rule-breaking society-rejecting culture, and is so extreme as to be unconvincing. His brother, throughout most of the book, is in fact locked up; his escape is marked by an outbreak of sadistic cruelty to any living creature which is unfortunate enough to cross his path. If you're going to get immersed in a book, suspend disbelief, and believe in the characters and situation, you have to feel at least some sympathy, empathy, connection with at least one person in it. It would be very difficult to like or care about any character in this book. They are all gross.
The final episodes of the novel contain a brief attempt at an explanation which is so unlikely, incredible, and unbelievable as to be wholly inadequate and made me regret the time spent trying to unravel the whys and wherefores.
I asked two sixteen-year-olds to read this book. They could not make any sense of it at all, and were not interested enough to try and figure it out.
The most objectionable aspect of the book is the detailed description of completely unnecessary cruelty to animals. Rabbits, birds, bees, wasps, sheep, dogs - nothing is off limits.
I cannot imagine what this book is doing on a recommended reading list for Year 11. Is it an example of fine literature? No. Does it give insight into the human condition? No. Does it leave the reader with a feeling of having understood something of the world we live in? No, unless the reader lives in a medieval lunatic asylum.
I would not recommended this book to Year 11 kids, nor to adults. Especially if they are prone to nightmares, or are of a sensitive disposition.
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