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Neschopnost
Napínavě humorný román z blízké budoucnosti, kdy celá Evropa bude pěkně spojená dokonalými zákony a neprůstřelnou ústavou, jejíž článek 13199 říká: "Nikomu nesmí být odepřeno zaměstnání jakéhokoli rozsahu na jakékoli pozici kvůli jeho věku, vyznání, barvě pleti či míře neschipnosti." Ve spojené Evropě blízké budoucnosti totiž neschopnost není možnost, s kterou se musí počítat; neschopnost je tu povinná. Jenomže někteří jedinci tento zákon nerespektují. Například vrah, za nímž v temných uličkách zůstává krvavá řada mrtvých těl. A tak se po jeho stopě vydává jeden svérázný detektiv. S jeho schopnostmi je to ovšem na pováženou.
310 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2003
37 people are currently reading
791 people want to read
About the author
Rob Grant
22 books156 followershttp://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rob_Grant
Writes under the name Grant Naylor when collaborating with Doug Naylor
Writes under the name Grant Naylor when collaborating with Doug Naylor
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 130 reviews
December 18, 2007
Incompetence begins fabulously, and I'm not just talking about the first page, or even sentence. Take a close look at the cover: notice the misplaced "e"? That's what caught my eye at the bookstore, and having never before heard of Rob Grant, I bought the book based solely on the strength of that cover alone. "Surely," I thought, "anyone who can purposely misspell the word 'incompetence' on the cover of a novel is a writer to be dealt with." In many ways I was right, but in many ways I think this novel fails.
First, let me set the stage. Incompetence is set in the not-too-far-off future, where a new European law has made it illegal to fire anyone for, well, being incompetent. The result is absolute chaos: businesses and government offices everywhere are suddenly overrun with idiots who can't--or perhaps just won't--do their jobs. And there's nothing anyone can do about it. Incompetence is political correctness taken to its satirical extreme, a slippery slope of such blatant logical fallaciousness to make Jonathan Swift blush.
So why do I think the novel fails? Let me go about explaining this by giving you the first sentence of the first chapter (I think I'm allowed to do this in a public forum, anyway): "The flight was uneventful enough, except the pilot accidentally touched down at a slightly wrong airport and forgot to lower the landing gear, so we left the plane by way of the emergency chute, and I lost my shoes." Fabulous first sentence, right? It does everything a first sentence should do: catch your attention and drag you in, making you want to read more. In terms of first sentences, this one's a killer. In fact, every sentence in the book is just like this one.
So why did I only give this book three stars? Well, let me repeat the last few words of the previous paragraph by way of explanation, placing slightly different emphasis: every sentence in the book is just like this one. Every sentence is a punchline. If that still sounds fun, imagine reading 5,000 punchlines in a row. On the sentence level, this book works fantastically, and there are paragraphs that I thought brilliant and read aloud to my wife. On the chapter level, however, it got old--fast. Like speed-reading through a Primary School joke book. A plot can only sustain so much humor and craziness; it needs something concrete and level-headed to anchor itself, and to throw the comedy into relief--even if that only appears in the descriptions of things like desks and houses and trains. Incompetence lacks this breath of sanity.
In addition, every conversation in the novel is rife with incompetence, stupidity, and bad judgment; the main character is about the only person in the book to show any inkling of intelligence. My "willing suspension of disbelief" can only go so far, and painting 99% of the human race as sheer idiots--even satirically--is too far of a stretch for me.
I also have a problem with the book's ending, but I'll save those comments so as not to spoil it for anyone.
Would I recommend this book to anyone? Yes, of course I would; I still gave it three stars out of five. It's a good book, in many ways: generally fun to read, absolutely hilarious in parts, thought-provoking in its satire, and intelligent. More than likely you'll enjoy reading it--some of you might find it hilarious, and add it to your list of "favorite books of all time."
For me, however, it was just too much. Like having 5,000 cream pies thrown in my face in rapid succession.
First, let me set the stage. Incompetence is set in the not-too-far-off future, where a new European law has made it illegal to fire anyone for, well, being incompetent. The result is absolute chaos: businesses and government offices everywhere are suddenly overrun with idiots who can't--or perhaps just won't--do their jobs. And there's nothing anyone can do about it. Incompetence is political correctness taken to its satirical extreme, a slippery slope of such blatant logical fallaciousness to make Jonathan Swift blush.
So why do I think the novel fails? Let me go about explaining this by giving you the first sentence of the first chapter (I think I'm allowed to do this in a public forum, anyway): "The flight was uneventful enough, except the pilot accidentally touched down at a slightly wrong airport and forgot to lower the landing gear, so we left the plane by way of the emergency chute, and I lost my shoes." Fabulous first sentence, right? It does everything a first sentence should do: catch your attention and drag you in, making you want to read more. In terms of first sentences, this one's a killer. In fact, every sentence in the book is just like this one.
So why did I only give this book three stars? Well, let me repeat the last few words of the previous paragraph by way of explanation, placing slightly different emphasis: every sentence in the book is just like this one. Every sentence is a punchline. If that still sounds fun, imagine reading 5,000 punchlines in a row. On the sentence level, this book works fantastically, and there are paragraphs that I thought brilliant and read aloud to my wife. On the chapter level, however, it got old--fast. Like speed-reading through a Primary School joke book. A plot can only sustain so much humor and craziness; it needs something concrete and level-headed to anchor itself, and to throw the comedy into relief--even if that only appears in the descriptions of things like desks and houses and trains. Incompetence lacks this breath of sanity.
In addition, every conversation in the novel is rife with incompetence, stupidity, and bad judgment; the main character is about the only person in the book to show any inkling of intelligence. My "willing suspension of disbelief" can only go so far, and painting 99% of the human race as sheer idiots--even satirically--is too far of a stretch for me.
I also have a problem with the book's ending, but I'll save those comments so as not to spoil it for anyone.
Would I recommend this book to anyone? Yes, of course I would; I still gave it three stars out of five. It's a good book, in many ways: generally fun to read, absolutely hilarious in parts, thought-provoking in its satire, and intelligent. More than likely you'll enjoy reading it--some of you might find it hilarious, and add it to your list of "favorite books of all time."
For me, however, it was just too much. Like having 5,000 cream pies thrown in my face in rapid succession.
February 25, 2012
I've been keeping this book on my "currently-reading" shelf forever because I wanted to give it a worthy review, with examples of all the things that led me to believe that this is the worst book I've ever read.
What a shame that a good idea can turn out mediocre because someone didn't have the patience to work on it properly. I've noticed that a lot with books and movies recently. I was so eager to read this book after I saw it in the bookstore. I expected something splendidly satiric from it, but I was so wrong. It went on and on and on and on with desperate jokes and comparisons I'd expect to find in a third-grader's short story.
Go ahead and make up your own mind, I'm sure many of you would be as excited as me about this book if you see the cover, and you'd have seen everything worth seeing already. Oh, and the epigraph. Read that too. That's about it.
Anyways, from the looks of it, I don't think the author is the right person to criticize incompetence.
Also, I was in a great moral dilemma about whether to donate this book or throw it away so that it never reaches anybody's hands again. Decided to go with donation. Someone might enjoy it. A book with such a promising title page going so terribly bad is an interesting phenomenon in itself.
What a shame that a good idea can turn out mediocre because someone didn't have the patience to work on it properly. I've noticed that a lot with books and movies recently. I was so eager to read this book after I saw it in the bookstore. I expected something splendidly satiric from it, but I was so wrong. It went on and on and on and on with desperate jokes and comparisons I'd expect to find in a third-grader's short story.
Go ahead and make up your own mind, I'm sure many of you would be as excited as me about this book if you see the cover, and you'd have seen everything worth seeing already. Oh, and the epigraph. Read that too. That's about it.
Anyways, from the looks of it, I don't think the author is the right person to criticize incompetence.
Also, I was in a great moral dilemma about whether to donate this book or throw it away so that it never reaches anybody's hands again. Decided to go with donation. Someone might enjoy it. A book with such a promising title page going so terribly bad is an interesting phenomenon in itself.
April 9, 2012
Probably the most sarcastic book I've ever read. Could not stop laughing.
May 7, 2009
The author obviously has a flair for writing. Unfortunately this flair may be limited to haiku, as on or about the eighth line I started to get sever pain in the front right lobe of my brain: This is the first time I have ever experienced deja vu as other than an existential event.
The first chapter was tough going. The author has a particular style and likes to hammer it home paragraph after paragraph remorselessly. Things got better for me further in, but I think this was a combination of my acceptance that there was no escape from the incredulity thinly laced with story, and my speed reading over the most obvious diatribes.
This book is a strange combination of second-rate EU bureaucratic mythos, gore and customer service one can freely enjoy at any 'restaurant' in Birmingham city centre.
The first chapter was tough going. The author has a particular style and likes to hammer it home paragraph after paragraph remorselessly. Things got better for me further in, but I think this was a combination of my acceptance that there was no escape from the incredulity thinly laced with story, and my speed reading over the most obvious diatribes.
This book is a strange combination of second-rate EU bureaucratic mythos, gore and customer service one can freely enjoy at any 'restaurant' in Birmingham city centre.
March 6, 2019
I actually started this book a while back and never added it to my “Currently Reading” list because frankly I was afraid I wouldn’t finish it. It was a slog. Coming from one of the Red Dwarf authors I was expecting brilliance. Brilliance it is not. I churned along through 3 or 4 minute chapters until I reached the end. There were a few chuckles but the whole concept just got tedious and superfluous. About as close to one-star as it’s possible to get without reaching that level. As I said, there were a few chuckles.
May 4, 2023
NSS: Non-specifically stupid.
* Unnecessary spoiler alert *
A not uncommon theme, which echoes reality--the CIA was behind all the killing and destabilization efforts, solely to protect American hegemony from a unified Europe.
Kinda fun read, although the unrelenting sarcasm wore thin every couple of pages. You could say that much of it is quite specifically stupid.
* Unnecessary spoiler alert *
A not uncommon theme, which echoes reality--the CIA was behind all the killing and destabilization efforts, solely to protect American hegemony from a unified Europe.
Kinda fun read, although the unrelenting sarcasm wore thin every couple of pages. You could say that much of it is quite specifically stupid.
June 14, 2009
This, according to a friend, was the funniest book he had ever read. He had been looking for it for years. As we walked away from the shop, he was chortling away as he read.
It was funny but the world’s best? I guess it must be more about the time he read it.
Nothing really “happens” in this book. The love interest just “is” and appears in one scene. The great mystery of the killer is kind of obvious.
But you’re not reading this for the biting plot. You’re reading it for the setups and moments of humour. Once you accept that many of the people are just stock characters and won’t affect the plot you can start enjoying the book and its little moments of madness. This is really a world full of idiots.
I expect to give it to my sister next time she wants a book that isn’t too hardgoing but still fun.
It was funny but the world’s best? I guess it must be more about the time he read it.
Nothing really “happens” in this book. The love interest just “is” and appears in one scene. The great mystery of the killer is kind of obvious.
But you’re not reading this for the biting plot. You’re reading it for the setups and moments of humour. Once you accept that many of the people are just stock characters and won’t affect the plot you can start enjoying the book and its little moments of madness. This is really a world full of idiots.
I expect to give it to my sister next time she wants a book that isn’t too hardgoing but still fun.
March 28, 2019
Dost epic. Už chápu ty nekonečné rezervace v knihovně.
Absurdistán, zeleninové boty a sebemrskačské vyšetřování (jako fakt, ten člověk by měl být už mrtvý tak v třetí kapitole, podle mě). To vše podáno ironickým a sarkastickým tónem.
Absurdistán, zeleninové boty a sebemrskačské vyšetřování (jako fakt, ten člověk by měl být už mrtvý tak v třetí kapitole, podle mě). To vše podáno ironickým a sarkastickým tónem.
November 2, 2020
This must have made for a good pitch—a hardboiled detective story set in a society where incompetence is protected by law—but Grant would have done well to keep the first-person narrative straight and let the inherent humour speak for itself.
February 4, 2022
Harry Salt isn't his name and whatever he is, he most assuredly isn't a member of any branch of the EU's investigation services, but when a crazy accident kills a contact in Rome, it leads Salt to a mass food poisoning in Paris and a sure sense that something doesn't quite smell right.
Rob Grant's anarchic humour showcases the frustration of going toe to toe with modern bureaucracy. On one level, hilariously funny, but also manages to be a decent techno thriller as well.
Rob Grant's anarchic humour showcases the frustration of going toe to toe with modern bureaucracy. On one level, hilariously funny, but also manages to be a decent techno thriller as well.
September 2, 2021
I was lent this book by a friend, it is the worst thing they ever did to me. It has sat beside my bed for years. Time and again, I try to dive in, get a few chapters deep and just decide I'd rather read anything else. Better a culture war screed by the most nasty conservative, better a saccharine fantasy novel without a tether to reality. Anything, anything but this smug mid-noughties satire of the European Union.
I am sure there are many other artefacts of the pre-Referendum political landscape that feel like nails on a chalkboard nowadays, but none could be as complete a collection of tabloid EuroMyths as Incompetence. I expect the plotline is resolved through a defective banana-straightening machine.
I am sure there are many other artefacts of the pre-Referendum political landscape that feel like nails on a chalkboard nowadays, but none could be as complete a collection of tabloid EuroMyths as Incompetence. I expect the plotline is resolved through a defective banana-straightening machine.
June 15, 2017
Incompetence is full of great humour, witty one liners and amusing thoughts. Rob Grant has a unique and old school sense of humour, which is undeniably English to the core. Incompetence is a great showcase for Grant, unleashing his style in a futuristic Europe, where stupidity is norm. Incompetence fails in the long term though. Despite the persistent humour, the actual story is rather mundane, through to a rather routine finale. With a better structure this book could have been great, however as it stands it remains good, if a little laborious at times.
March 9, 2019
Jsem zase měla vysoké očekávání. V knihovně rezervace na dvěstě let dopředu.
Líbí se mi absurdní znění celé knihy, někdy jsem se i zasmála, parodie na EU, parodie na špionážní knihy/filmy.
Ale přece jen jsem si říkala, ať už to sakra skončí.
Knihu jsem malém odložila po 50 stranách, protože jsem si říkala, ze tenhle styl nedám.
Dala jsem!
Možná nejsem cílová skupina pro tenhle smysl pro humor/drama.
Líbí se mi absurdní znění celé knihy, někdy jsem se i zasmála, parodie na EU, parodie na špionážní knihy/filmy.
Ale přece jen jsem si říkala, ať už to sakra skončí.
Knihu jsem malém odložila po 50 stranách, protože jsem si říkala, ze tenhle styl nedám.
Dala jsem!
Možná nejsem cílová skupina pro tenhle smysl pro humor/drama.
May 20, 2020
It's not often I dislike a book this much and actually finish it. However, the writing style was at least readable. The premise and situations were just plain annoying. None of the characters had any depth or relatability and the the plot was almost non-existent. What little plot there was, was predictable. I had found this book on the back of a shelf in my home and have no idea how it got there.
December 17, 2017
In the all-to-near future, the European Union is well on its way to becoming a single federalised state. Unfortunately, due to the passing of Article 13199 of the Pan-European Constitution ("No person shall be prejudiced from employment in any capacity, at any level, by reason of age, race, creed or incompitence,"), the continent is grinding to a halt. One detective is assigned to track down a dangerous killer, but finds his investigation complicated by blind nightclub bouncers, octogenarian male lap-dancers, priapic train stewards and airline ticket salesmen with attention disorders.
Incompetence, originally published in 2003, was the second original novel by Rob Grant, better-known to many SF fans as the co-creator of Red Dwarf. One of Grant's favourite topics, shown sporadically in Dwarf but reaching a kind of insane art form here, is the sheer, mind-numbingly unbelievable insanity that bureaucracy is capable of. Obviously the EU, with its perchance for fining corner-shop greengrocers who sensibly refuse to use measurements its customers find incomprehensible thousands of pounds for each infringement, is a tempting and irresistible target for his humour.
The result is a book driven by the type of comedic raging fury of the kind that Basil Fawlty would have channeled should he have ever chosen to write a novel (although this would be an admittedly difficult task for a fictional character) about the European Union. Our 'hero' is on the trail of a deadly killer but the case is interrupted by every five minutes by increasingly bizarre and convoluted brushes with EU law or regulations. He hires a car, but in the interval between hiring it in the office and crossing the parking lot to where his hire-car is waiting for him, it's been clamped for being parked in the wrong place. Trying to get on a train takes 22 pages of insane, and at times life-threatening, wrangling. The police attempt to stop a runaway car but can't come up with a way of doing it effectively so end up deploying anti-tank weaponry. And so on.
It's a very, very funny book. The laughs start on the first page and don't stop until the last. And it's not even as if the author is really succeeding at making a serious point about the EU. The situations the main character finds himself in are so insanely over-the-top they will almost certainly never happen, although there's a few that do seem somewhat plausible (like the one about the old guy who is accidentally declared dead and his wife receives a fat cheque from the government, so they decide to keep up the pretense he is dead).
In addition to the non-stop comedy and satire, there are a few nice moments of understated writing as well. There's a blink-and-you-miss-it moment towards the end where our (unnamed, by the way, I haven't just forgotten what his name is) protagonist proves how competent he is, even if the rest of Europe isn't. And to be honest the main, more serious plot is never really given a lot of time to develop, due to the constant misadventures and brushes with bureaucracy along the way.
But that's not too much of a problem. Incompetence (****) is extremely funny from start to finish and constantly entertaining. The book is available now in the UK, but unsurprisingly not in the USA (possibly for fear that Americans would accept it as a serious and well-informed factual book about the EU), although Amazon.com has some import copies available.
I talked to Rob Grant at the Gollancz Autumn Party and he informed me that this book is being adapted as a stage play by a Swiss (I think) company. How on Earth they'd do the book on stage I'm not sure, but it would certainly make a superb movie or TV series at some point.
Incompetence, originally published in 2003, was the second original novel by Rob Grant, better-known to many SF fans as the co-creator of Red Dwarf. One of Grant's favourite topics, shown sporadically in Dwarf but reaching a kind of insane art form here, is the sheer, mind-numbingly unbelievable insanity that bureaucracy is capable of. Obviously the EU, with its perchance for fining corner-shop greengrocers who sensibly refuse to use measurements its customers find incomprehensible thousands of pounds for each infringement, is a tempting and irresistible target for his humour.
The result is a book driven by the type of comedic raging fury of the kind that Basil Fawlty would have channeled should he have ever chosen to write a novel (although this would be an admittedly difficult task for a fictional character) about the European Union. Our 'hero' is on the trail of a deadly killer but the case is interrupted by every five minutes by increasingly bizarre and convoluted brushes with EU law or regulations. He hires a car, but in the interval between hiring it in the office and crossing the parking lot to where his hire-car is waiting for him, it's been clamped for being parked in the wrong place. Trying to get on a train takes 22 pages of insane, and at times life-threatening, wrangling. The police attempt to stop a runaway car but can't come up with a way of doing it effectively so end up deploying anti-tank weaponry. And so on.
It's a very, very funny book. The laughs start on the first page and don't stop until the last. And it's not even as if the author is really succeeding at making a serious point about the EU. The situations the main character finds himself in are so insanely over-the-top they will almost certainly never happen, although there's a few that do seem somewhat plausible (like the one about the old guy who is accidentally declared dead and his wife receives a fat cheque from the government, so they decide to keep up the pretense he is dead).
In addition to the non-stop comedy and satire, there are a few nice moments of understated writing as well. There's a blink-and-you-miss-it moment towards the end where our (unnamed, by the way, I haven't just forgotten what his name is) protagonist proves how competent he is, even if the rest of Europe isn't. And to be honest the main, more serious plot is never really given a lot of time to develop, due to the constant misadventures and brushes with bureaucracy along the way.
But that's not too much of a problem. Incompetence (****) is extremely funny from start to finish and constantly entertaining. The book is available now in the UK, but unsurprisingly not in the USA (possibly for fear that Americans would accept it as a serious and well-informed factual book about the EU), although Amazon.com has some import copies available.
I talked to Rob Grant at the Gollancz Autumn Party and he informed me that this book is being adapted as a stage play by a Swiss (I think) company. How on Earth they'd do the book on stage I'm not sure, but it would certainly make a superb movie or TV series at some point.
March 4, 2019
A promising premise that falls apart halfway through. It had some genuinely hilarious moments in the early stages, but somewhere around the train scene it just seems rushed, lazy, repetitive, and lackluster.
In the near future Europe in unified and it's illegal to discriminate against anyone for anything. Solid idea- it seems a bit like political hyperbole, which made me a bit wary, but it's a friggin fiction, I won't read into it and think it really represents Grant's views on the current direction of the world. And it starts out with uproarious humor- it really is some of the funniest scene setting I've read.
Where it falls apart is in the second half or last third of the book- the plot is nonsense and just a vehicle for the humor, and as Grant needs to come to a finish he starts painting action scenes that just kinda suck. Our protagonist, Harry Salt (he also goes by many other names) ends up being dragged by a train, and I'm not really sure how he gets out of it. I don't really care. It just kinda dragged along here, trying for ridiculous humor and going off the rails in the process. It all culminates in this detective, Salt, discovering that a *spoiler* deep agent inside his contacts has set it all up, trying to derail unified Europe so as to aid America. It's just a terrible plot. It started off strong, it built well, but there were numerous times toward the end where I didn't quite understand how Salt ended up where he was, what clues had led him to that location. The humor feels stale by this point, it feels like Grant is no longer trying, and the whole thing whimpers to a close with an ending just completely outta the blue. Why did Klingferm stage the whole thing? Because spy reasons, deep state reasons, that sorta nonsense. It makes no sense based on the preceding pages.
Just kinda a waste of solid satirical humor. My favorite part is towards the end, where the lackey leading Salt to Klingferm takes him into a cable car so they can get to Klingferm on Magic Mountain (at this point Grant's just throwing crap at the wall and seeing what sticks). The lackey has a knife, but somehow Salt takes it from him and kills him. There's no explanation as to how, it just happens. It's tough to follow and just awful writing- like, what? How'd he do that? "Stinko followed me in, turned to shut the door, I killed him, then the cable car started..". Just awful.
Great first half, very fun, and very engaging, but halfway through you realize Grant has no master plan for the plot and it all quickly falls apart. The humor is gone, replaced by boring ridiculous situations, and there is no satisfying conclusion.
In the near future Europe in unified and it's illegal to discriminate against anyone for anything. Solid idea- it seems a bit like political hyperbole, which made me a bit wary, but it's a friggin fiction, I won't read into it and think it really represents Grant's views on the current direction of the world. And it starts out with uproarious humor- it really is some of the funniest scene setting I've read.
Where it falls apart is in the second half or last third of the book- the plot is nonsense and just a vehicle for the humor, and as Grant needs to come to a finish he starts painting action scenes that just kinda suck. Our protagonist, Harry Salt (he also goes by many other names) ends up being dragged by a train, and I'm not really sure how he gets out of it. I don't really care. It just kinda dragged along here, trying for ridiculous humor and going off the rails in the process. It all culminates in this detective, Salt, discovering that a *spoiler* deep agent inside his contacts has set it all up, trying to derail unified Europe so as to aid America. It's just a terrible plot. It started off strong, it built well, but there were numerous times toward the end where I didn't quite understand how Salt ended up where he was, what clues had led him to that location. The humor feels stale by this point, it feels like Grant is no longer trying, and the whole thing whimpers to a close with an ending just completely outta the blue. Why did Klingferm stage the whole thing? Because spy reasons, deep state reasons, that sorta nonsense. It makes no sense based on the preceding pages.
Just kinda a waste of solid satirical humor. My favorite part is towards the end, where the lackey leading Salt to Klingferm takes him into a cable car so they can get to Klingferm on Magic Mountain (at this point Grant's just throwing crap at the wall and seeing what sticks). The lackey has a knife, but somehow Salt takes it from him and kills him. There's no explanation as to how, it just happens. It's tough to follow and just awful writing- like, what? How'd he do that? "Stinko followed me in, turned to shut the door, I killed him, then the cable car started..". Just awful.
Great first half, very fun, and very engaging, but halfway through you realize Grant has no master plan for the plot and it all quickly falls apart. The humor is gone, replaced by boring ridiculous situations, and there is no satisfying conclusion.
September 14, 2024
I picked this up because I was reminded of it after seeing a review of Lionel Shriver's Mania which I've still not read.
Being Rob Grant (of Red Dwarf fame) I thought it would be a little, well, manic. It wasn't that, but Incompetence suffers from Inconsistency.
There are some great moments; the protagonists effort to board an airliner flight without a ticket is one of them. Too many little sketches though are just too long. A crazed conversation with a train station manager, picking-up a rental car, a lengthy arrest & incarceration scene, a long-drawn-out train journey but not in a carriage...There's a 'baddy' who isn't really all that convincing; a standard CIA-type with a fairly thin purpose. There are a lot of 'hang-on, wouldn't you do that?' moments, with characters, particularly the protagonist, performing activities at odds with what I'd have done.
Worse, the central theme of the novel; life in a European Union where incompetence isn't a concern that will stop you securing a well-paid or vital role, isn't really explored. That's a shame, because Grant was onto something here; in the years since publication (2003) we've sort of collectively got used to the idea that incompetent people can secure roles that they rightly shouldn't be in. The UK, a former Prime Minister who only lasted a few weeks in the role, comes-to-mind as a good example. Hiring the most inappropriate person for the most vital role seems to becoming-the-norm.
Probably the most regular indicator of incompetence are those who practise 'First-Day Syndrome'; someone who has occupied a role for years, but simply hasn't progressed beyond the impression it's their first day. All this though escaped Incompetence and that was a shame, because Grant was leading-the-pack with his idea.
Being Rob Grant (of Red Dwarf fame) I thought it would be a little, well, manic. It wasn't that, but Incompetence suffers from Inconsistency.
There are some great moments; the protagonists effort to board an airliner flight without a ticket is one of them. Too many little sketches though are just too long. A crazed conversation with a train station manager, picking-up a rental car, a lengthy arrest & incarceration scene, a long-drawn-out train journey but not in a carriage...There's a 'baddy' who isn't really all that convincing; a standard CIA-type with a fairly thin purpose. There are a lot of 'hang-on, wouldn't you do that?' moments, with characters, particularly the protagonist, performing activities at odds with what I'd have done.
Worse, the central theme of the novel; life in a European Union where incompetence isn't a concern that will stop you securing a well-paid or vital role, isn't really explored. That's a shame, because Grant was onto something here; in the years since publication (2003) we've sort of collectively got used to the idea that incompetent people can secure roles that they rightly shouldn't be in. The UK, a former Prime Minister who only lasted a few weeks in the role, comes-to-mind as a good example. Hiring the most inappropriate person for the most vital role seems to becoming-the-norm.
Probably the most regular indicator of incompetence are those who practise 'First-Day Syndrome'; someone who has occupied a role for years, but simply hasn't progressed beyond the impression it's their first day. All this though escaped Incompetence and that was a shame, because Grant was leading-the-pack with his idea.
July 19, 2021
The most amazing thing about this book is that it seems to have turned from pure humour to a bit of a survival guide for the way the world is headed. True we are not at these extremes yet but we probably will be at some point and for everyone that has found frustration in every day life from things like spiralling bureaucracy to blatantly incompetent people being promoted for reasons other than their ability to do their jobs will no doubt find an uncomfortable amount of familiarity with a lot of these situations. That said, the book is still very funny.
The plot itself is actually very simple and were these events to unfold in a more sensible world would be nothing but a mildly interesting short story. However, that isn't the world it is set and here doing something as simple as getting a hire car, boarding a train or locating a bed in your hotel room now require an entire chapter of obstacles and eccentric characters for our hero to navigate past. The odd side effect of this is the story itself isn't really that compelling and is secondary to the bizarre world in which it is set.
Ultimately though this is a fun read and if you liked Rob grant's previous work (Mostly Red Dwarf) you won't be disappointed.
The plot itself is actually very simple and were these events to unfold in a more sensible world would be nothing but a mildly interesting short story. However, that isn't the world it is set and here doing something as simple as getting a hire car, boarding a train or locating a bed in your hotel room now require an entire chapter of obstacles and eccentric characters for our hero to navigate past. The odd side effect of this is the story itself isn't really that compelling and is secondary to the bizarre world in which it is set.
Ultimately though this is a fun read and if you liked Rob grant's previous work (Mostly Red Dwarf) you won't be disappointed.
December 13, 2024
*2.25 stars*. Meh. Fun premise but too much execution. And what I mean by that is that every single sentence in every single chapter is an emphatic joke/satire. It’s too much. The book just doesn’t breathe…..it needs some space between ideas and thoughts. I love a good satire-make fun of political correctness or ridiculous people or political systems or whatever-but there HAS to be SOME subtleties. It can’t be a bat to the head with every sentence. I was bummed because I thought this read was going to be fun and it just wasn’t. A lot of reviewers really liked it so take my review with a grain of salt. Perhaps find a preview read of a few chapters and keep in mind-those are how the entire book reads-so it is a preference thing.
“Bad is the new good. In the not too distant future the European Union enacts its most far reaching human rights legislation ever. The incompetent have been persecuted for too long. After all it's not their fault they can't do it right, is it? So it is made illegal to sack or otherwise discriminate against anyone for being incompetent. And now a murder has been committed and our possibly incompetent detective must find out who the murderer is. As long as he can find directions to get him through the mean streets.” (From the book blurb)
“Bad is the new good. In the not too distant future the European Union enacts its most far reaching human rights legislation ever. The incompetent have been persecuted for too long. After all it's not their fault they can't do it right, is it? So it is made illegal to sack or otherwise discriminate against anyone for being incompetent. And now a murder has been committed and our possibly incompetent detective must find out who the murderer is. As long as he can find directions to get him through the mean streets.” (From the book blurb)
March 11, 2021
This was cleverer than I thought it would be, the plot is interesting and the absurdity is often actually hilarious. Grant regularly leads us astray while we steadily move through the main puzzle, it felt a lot like a Dirk Gently zigzagging around chasing clues until we reach the smashing conclusion.
It's not Red Dwarf, but like any good Dwarf episode, you'll expect a bit of potty humour sprinkled between a series of well structured jokes and even a little bit of profound philosophical commentary.
I thought the ponderings on the items inside the dead man's apartment were great, especially on the pairs of neatly rolled socks waiting patiently in a drawer, ready for a day that's never coming.
The idea of a 33 floor elevator in a 17 story building captured the brilliance of the book (and also of Red Dwarf), which for me was to test the extremities of absurdity.
This was fun and totally surpassed my expectations. A quick search only pops up two or three other non Dwarf books by Grant but if I can get my hands on those I'll definitely be giving them a run.
It's not Red Dwarf, but like any good Dwarf episode, you'll expect a bit of potty humour sprinkled between a series of well structured jokes and even a little bit of profound philosophical commentary.
I thought the ponderings on the items inside the dead man's apartment were great, especially on the pairs of neatly rolled socks waiting patiently in a drawer, ready for a day that's never coming.
The idea of a 33 floor elevator in a 17 story building captured the brilliance of the book (and also of Red Dwarf), which for me was to test the extremities of absurdity.
This was fun and totally surpassed my expectations. A quick search only pops up two or three other non Dwarf books by Grant but if I can get my hands on those I'll definitely be giving them a run.
June 22, 2015
Incompetence is a comedy noir-esque novel by Rob Grant, best known for his work as one half of Grant Naylor, the writers of Red Dwarf. Set in the near future where United States of Europe Article 13199 has banned basing hiring and firing practices on a person's competence level, Harry Salt - deep undercover agent for an British/European intelligence agency - has to unravel the mysterious death of fellow cell member Klingferm, committed by the anonymous and dangerous Jack Appleseed.
If that sounds a bit heavy going for a comedy novel, there is no need to fret: 'Incompetence' doesn't let things like an international race to find a cold-blooded murderer before he kills again get in the way of hilarious multi-chapter rants against easy targets like airport security, train timetables, and hotel service.
This results in a slightly disjoint feeling, as the plot-humour balance is left completely out of whack. For example, somewhere around the book's last 20 pages, Grant realises that he's managed to avoid telling an actual story and has to rush the exposition in less space than he spends describing the humiliations Harry undergoes on a train journey.
Incompetence is a theme, with the running gag that competent people are stuck in low grade positions such has sergeant or intern professor, while psychopaths and the truly stupid are elevated to the upper echelons. Possibly Grant had heard of the Dilbert principle, which describes this sort of career advancement precisely, where nature takes the least productive members of the workforce and places them away from the useful people - higher up in the pecking order, but out of the way nonetheless. This is an overly pessimistic view, but I'm sure everyone has had that 'one boss' whose position escaped all reason and common sense, so the sentiment will ring somewhat true.
The story is told in the first person by the protagonist, a largely frustrated 'big man' detective-spy who takes enough physical punishment throughout the novel to last several lifetimes. He is incredibly bad at keeping track of his shoes, and simultaneously has the best and worst luck of anyone alive.
Fond of metaphor and similie, Harry peppers much of his inner thoughts with Red Dwarf-esque random comparisons, such as describing the room afforded by airlines for hand luggage to have 'the same cubic capacity as a stingily filled beef sandwich with the crusts cut off'.
This feels a bit weird, for a couple of reasons: First: Harry (or Grant, rather) is not fond of using clichés, so every metaphor is a bizarre, never-before-heard moment of confusion for the reader. Secondly: Because this style of writing is so Grant Naylor, it's hard to escape the mental image of Red Dwarf's Rimmer rattling off one of his similarly-worded non-standard metaphors. This isn't a problem, but people familiar with the boys from the Dwarf will definitely recognise the style.
Using Harry as a mouthpiece for rants happens throughout the novel. A lot. I already mentioned the plot is largely pointless, and it's because of Grant's tendancy to focus on a strictly plot-unrelated elements for chapters at a time. There is a storyline in there, but the book is largely about picking on bueraucracy and making sure Harry is having a bad time for the reader's pleasure, or both. One chapter is devoted to an argument between Harry and a stationmaster at an out-of-place train station. While hilarious, there's absolutely no point behind it. In the end, when the plot is thrown at you, it's hard to care.
The revelations are equal parts obvious and obtuse: A particularly gifted and well-read reader might have been able to piece together some of the subtleties of the utterly irrelevent plot before the reveals, but the major elements are so heavily hinted at it makes me wonder if Grant titled the book after the kind of people he thought would be reading it.
Harry isn't the only character in this competency-challenged world. Other characters include hothead police captain called Zuccho, prone to fits of violence and extreme rage, Gina Pallister, whose role in the novel extends purely to being the only attractive person that Harry meets, and an elderly couple where the husband is legally dead and the wife collects related cheques. None of these characters really matter, because they won't appear again in any important capacity. In Gina's case, she provides the novel's saucy bits and promptly doesn't show up again. The elderly couple are an amusing side story. Zuccho actually does show up again, but for no real reason other than the fact it saves Grant from writing another one-use character.
I tried hard to like 'Incompetence'. It's not a bad novel. The writing works, and everything is well described with a great sense of humour. I'm not sure it's my sense of humour, but I still found plenty of laugh out loud moments whenever Harry had to bash his head against the nightmare of red tape. My major problems with the book were the whole 'lack of a story' thing, and the ridiculous amount of time spent on certain scenes at the expense of the plot. The novel only decides it's actually a proper noir right near the end, and the tone change is noticeable and unpleasant, with the humour evaporating almost entirely, giving the impression Grant wanted to write two books but only had the advance for one.
If you're a Red Dwarf fan, or hate red tape with a fiery passion, Incompetence is probably the novel for you! If you want an actual plot, or characters to care about, you could do better, but maybe the humour can keep you going in their place.
If that sounds a bit heavy going for a comedy novel, there is no need to fret: 'Incompetence' doesn't let things like an international race to find a cold-blooded murderer before he kills again get in the way of hilarious multi-chapter rants against easy targets like airport security, train timetables, and hotel service.
This results in a slightly disjoint feeling, as the plot-humour balance is left completely out of whack. For example, somewhere around the book's last 20 pages, Grant realises that he's managed to avoid telling an actual story and has to rush the exposition in less space than he spends describing the humiliations Harry undergoes on a train journey.
Incompetence is a theme, with the running gag that competent people are stuck in low grade positions such has sergeant or intern professor, while psychopaths and the truly stupid are elevated to the upper echelons. Possibly Grant had heard of the Dilbert principle, which describes this sort of career advancement precisely, where nature takes the least productive members of the workforce and places them away from the useful people - higher up in the pecking order, but out of the way nonetheless. This is an overly pessimistic view, but I'm sure everyone has had that 'one boss' whose position escaped all reason and common sense, so the sentiment will ring somewhat true.
The story is told in the first person by the protagonist, a largely frustrated 'big man' detective-spy who takes enough physical punishment throughout the novel to last several lifetimes. He is incredibly bad at keeping track of his shoes, and simultaneously has the best and worst luck of anyone alive.
Fond of metaphor and similie, Harry peppers much of his inner thoughts with Red Dwarf-esque random comparisons, such as describing the room afforded by airlines for hand luggage to have 'the same cubic capacity as a stingily filled beef sandwich with the crusts cut off'.
This feels a bit weird, for a couple of reasons: First: Harry (or Grant, rather) is not fond of using clichés, so every metaphor is a bizarre, never-before-heard moment of confusion for the reader. Secondly: Because this style of writing is so Grant Naylor, it's hard to escape the mental image of Red Dwarf's Rimmer rattling off one of his similarly-worded non-standard metaphors. This isn't a problem, but people familiar with the boys from the Dwarf will definitely recognise the style.
Using Harry as a mouthpiece for rants happens throughout the novel. A lot. I already mentioned the plot is largely pointless, and it's because of Grant's tendancy to focus on a strictly plot-unrelated elements for chapters at a time. There is a storyline in there, but the book is largely about picking on bueraucracy and making sure Harry is having a bad time for the reader's pleasure, or both. One chapter is devoted to an argument between Harry and a stationmaster at an out-of-place train station. While hilarious, there's absolutely no point behind it. In the end, when the plot is thrown at you, it's hard to care.
The revelations are equal parts obvious and obtuse: A particularly gifted and well-read reader might have been able to piece together some of the subtleties of the utterly irrelevent plot before the reveals, but the major elements are so heavily hinted at it makes me wonder if Grant titled the book after the kind of people he thought would be reading it.
Harry isn't the only character in this competency-challenged world. Other characters include hothead police captain called Zuccho, prone to fits of violence and extreme rage, Gina Pallister, whose role in the novel extends purely to being the only attractive person that Harry meets, and an elderly couple where the husband is legally dead and the wife collects related cheques. None of these characters really matter, because they won't appear again in any important capacity. In Gina's case, she provides the novel's saucy bits and promptly doesn't show up again. The elderly couple are an amusing side story. Zuccho actually does show up again, but for no real reason other than the fact it saves Grant from writing another one-use character.
I tried hard to like 'Incompetence'. It's not a bad novel. The writing works, and everything is well described with a great sense of humour. I'm not sure it's my sense of humour, but I still found plenty of laugh out loud moments whenever Harry had to bash his head against the nightmare of red tape. My major problems with the book were the whole 'lack of a story' thing, and the ridiculous amount of time spent on certain scenes at the expense of the plot. The novel only decides it's actually a proper noir right near the end, and the tone change is noticeable and unpleasant, with the humour evaporating almost entirely, giving the impression Grant wanted to write two books but only had the advance for one.
If you're a Red Dwarf fan, or hate red tape with a fiery passion, Incompetence is probably the novel for you! If you want an actual plot, or characters to care about, you could do better, but maybe the humour can keep you going in their place.
February 12, 2019
I read Incompetence first around 15 years ago and remember loving it to bits. The idea of a detective story in a world where stupidity, irresponsibility, incompetence and lack of common sense are the prevalent attributes of humanity was awesome, and in my youthful, naive belief in the future of mankind I thought the story was just an awesome cynical rant and satire.
Now, I relate to Harry and his struggles in a much different way. It's not alternate reality if we're actually living it. Incompetence is still one of the most cynical, sarcastic and funniest books I've ever read. The humor has just become so much darker and realistic...
Now, I relate to Harry and his struggles in a much different way. It's not alternate reality if we're actually living it. Incompetence is still one of the most cynical, sarcastic and funniest books I've ever read. The humor has just become so much darker and realistic...
May 3, 2019
As crime thrillers go this is not good. For comedy and predicting the future... SPOT ON!
Set in a future wherethe european directives state that "anyone regardless of their ability or disability can have a job. This involves waiters with torrets, a ticket clerk at the airport with attention defecit disorder and on it goes.
Just imagine a very OCD person committing the perfect crime :)
A fun read but a bit repetitve hence the three stars.
Nearly made it five stars having been set in a EU where speaking English is the law while any other language and...
YOUR KNICKED GUV!
Set in a future wherethe european directives state that "anyone regardless of their ability or disability can have a job. This involves waiters with torrets, a ticket clerk at the airport with attention defecit disorder and on it goes.
Just imagine a very OCD person committing the perfect crime :)
A fun read but a bit repetitve hence the three stars.
Nearly made it five stars having been set in a EU where speaking English is the law while any other language and...
YOUR KNICKED GUV!
September 30, 2020
Well, firstly, is this a good book? Yes...very mature authorship: fine writing and colourful scene-setting.
Rob Grant combines a deep-seated annoyance of modern life, with a journey through how a United Europe may look, to a rip-roaring, hi-octane mission of a detective/spy named Harry.
One minor criticism: the section where Harry tries to catch the train, goes on and on. ‘Longueur’ as the French would say!
However, in the round, most enjoyable and well recommended - a weaving raconteur; another opus to add to Grant’s compendium of fine work.
Rob Grant combines a deep-seated annoyance of modern life, with a journey through how a United Europe may look, to a rip-roaring, hi-octane mission of a detective/spy named Harry.
One minor criticism: the section where Harry tries to catch the train, goes on and on. ‘Longueur’ as the French would say!
However, in the round, most enjoyable and well recommended - a weaving raconteur; another opus to add to Grant’s compendium of fine work.
September 13, 2024
Witty, satiric, prescient. Written in 2003, it explores what life would be like if it were illegal to discriminate on the basis of incompetence.
It’s a murder mystery and, when finally revealed, the motivations of the culprit made me think, ‘Whoa! How did Grant know?’ (I won’t say more; no spoilers.)
But, I will offer a warning that this book is raw and likely too earthy for my friends here (hence three stars and not four). It is dark humor not PG Wodehouse. The murder scenes are brutally and vividly described, the language is coarse, and some scenes are definitely rated R.
It’s a murder mystery and, when finally revealed, the motivations of the culprit made me think, ‘Whoa! How did Grant know?’ (I won’t say more; no spoilers.)
But, I will offer a warning that this book is raw and likely too earthy for my friends here (hence three stars and not four). It is dark humor not PG Wodehouse. The murder scenes are brutally and vividly described, the language is coarse, and some scenes are definitely rated R.
December 31, 2019
Not a Red Dwarf novel but packed with the humour Grant (& Doug Naylor) have made their own. We begin in a world where people are imprisoned for selling bananas that are too yellow & planes that miraculously arrive at the right airport somehow forget to lower their landing gear; a place where things are always expected to go wrong, bigly. It becomes a crime thriller, of sorts, & includes action set pieces & bizarre characters, all wrapped inside that trademark humour. A most enjoyable Xmas read.
June 19, 2019
A fun adventure of a book. However there are times where parts drag and I felt that I got the point and wanted the narrative to move on. To begin with the protagonist was relatable in an exaggerated way with dry humour. However the last quarter of the book makes for frustrating reading. I enjoyed it but felt like there were parts that should have wrapped up quicker.
March 6, 2021
A tale of two halves. The first half lives up to it’s title, and is very funny and well written. The second becomes just another book and loses its main theme, though still enjoyable. I wanted to give this more than 3 stars as I love Rob Grant and his books but because I felt it lost its flow and the premise I couldn’t.
June 25, 2025
Jako… nebylo to špatný. Já jen nemám moc zálibu v knížkách, kde se sáhodlouze popisují akční scény (což z anotace člověk v tomhle případě úplně nečekal), jednak mě to nudí (to i ve filmech) a jednak se na to nedokážu soustředit tak, abych si to dokázala představit. Jinak slušný, ale zas nic omračujícího.
May 19, 2019
This is the second book of Rob Grant I read, similar to Colony the book started of fast paced and intriguing. The second half seemed to slow down and stop abruptly. I did still enjoy the overall concept.
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