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Ring Road
This is an alternate cover edition for ISBN 9780007156542
Big Davey Quinn, unexceptional seventh son of a seventh son, has come home. In twenty years, many things about his home town have changed. But the locals have not. Bob Savory has made a million with his company Sandwich Classics. Francie McGinnn, the divorced minister at The People's Fellowship, is still trying to convert the town through his Fish-and-Chip Biblical Quiz Nights. And Sammy, the town's best plumber, is looking for solace at the bottom of the whisky bottle.
Clever, touching and spot-on in its depiction of small town life, Ring Road confirms Ian Sansom's status as one of our funniest and most perceptive authors.
Big Davey Quinn, unexceptional seventh son of a seventh son, has come home. In twenty years, many things about his home town have changed. But the locals have not. Bob Savory has made a million with his company Sandwich Classics. Francie McGinnn, the divorced minister at The People's Fellowship, is still trying to convert the town through his Fish-and-Chip Biblical Quiz Nights. And Sammy, the town's best plumber, is looking for solace at the bottom of the whisky bottle.
Clever, touching and spot-on in its depiction of small town life, Ring Road confirms Ian Sansom's status as one of our funniest and most perceptive authors.
366 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2004
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77 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
November 12, 2014
Episodic and sometimes with only the thinnest of links between the chapters, this reads like a book of short stories. But an excellent book of short stories.
Set in a town, the narrator wanders about, introducing us to the characters, their hopes, dreams, successes, failures, etc. Some stories are funny, some odd, one or two almost unbearably sad.
Wrapped up in a satisfying way. I could easily have stayed around for longer. Some of the characters turn up again in the 'mobile library' series - but generally only as bit parts. I particularly enjoyed getting right inside their heads with this book.
Set in a town, the narrator wanders about, introducing us to the characters, their hopes, dreams, successes, failures, etc. Some stories are funny, some odd, one or two almost unbearably sad.
Wrapped up in a satisfying way. I could easily have stayed around for longer. Some of the characters turn up again in the 'mobile library' series - but generally only as bit parts. I particularly enjoyed getting right inside their heads with this book.
September 11, 2011
I really enjoyed the Mobile Libray - and am continuously looking for the sequels to that book (in the charity shops!!) so this was expected to be similarly enjoyable. No. I do hope this was Ian Sansom learning his craft because it was like gnawing on a bone. I felt like I was reading a diary of everyday dealings of everyday folk while looking for the theme, the story, the link. Okay so we kept getting references to the ring road (which was built while our narrator was away from home) but I confess I got bored and put this away. Shame.
January 20, 2015
I wanted to like this, I really did, but I had trouble getting through it in the end. I think it was the footnotes, which put together could be chapters themselves. Although an admirable attempt at setting a fictional book like a factual one (including the index at the back) in my opinion it just doesn't work
January 12, 2014
The unknown narrator gossips with the reader about the goings-on and lives of people in an English town, and their lives unfold and intersect in increasing detail, revealing secrets that in retrospect always made sense. Ostensibly, a comedy.
March 27, 2012
The character of Israel was very funny. The description of Northern Ireland was fine. However the description of London was excellent.
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December 23, 2014I registered a book at BookCrossing.com!
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13084681
http://www.BookCrossing.com/journal/13084681
April 1, 2017
Took a bit of getting into as each chapter is more like a short story. Very amusing in places. I'd like to know how some of the events in the stories turned out but I guess we'll never know.
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews