Mr Cassini

by Lloyd Jones

Packed with literary allusion, this circuitous story of strange travels where past and present merge and dreams threaten to dominate reality is an atypical look at a journey from abuse to personal redemption. This Welsh Arabian Nights takes the reader on a trip grounded in the history and literature of Wales, exploring the painful yet humorous reality and dreams of Duxie and Ollie as they encounter famous Welsh heroes and must learn to contend with the terrifying Mr. Cassini himself.

Genres: Fiction, Literature

320 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2006

About the author

Lloyd Jones is a contemporary novelist from Wales.

He formerly worked on a farm and as a newspaper editor, a lecturer and a mencap nurse. His first two novels were both published through Welsh publishing house Seren. Mr Vogel (2004), winner of the McKitterick Prize, was based partly upon Jones' walking completely around Wales, a 1000-mile journey (he is the first Welsh person to do so). His second book, Mr Cassini (2006), was partially inspired by his walking across Wales in seven different directions; it won the Wales Book of the Year award 2007. His third book, My First Colouring Book, a collection of short stories and essays, was published in October 2008. He published a novel in Welsh, Y Dŵr, with Y Lolfa in June 2009.

Reviews

[Ria · Rating 5 out of 5]

A clever story but what a terrible ending, the author is very hippy trippy and goes off on a tangent frequently, i know the main protagonist in the story is also a little "gone" but the author portrays it well as to reflect the deviation of Duxie's mind he flits from subject to subject and involves mythological and historical characters to populate his mind at random.

[Richard · Rating 5 out of 5]

A tough book to get into. The author has an unusual style of writing and often arcs away from the story on a tangent. However, even though they're not particularly related to the story at times, these asides can be fascinating and funny and have inspired me to look up other books and authors mentioned in this one. In some ways these were the best parts of the book. The main story is well written for the most part but the book is let down by the 'trial' ending being a bit of an anti-climax.

[Math · Rating 5 out of 5]

Mr Cassini is an amalgam of traditional story telling and a fast paces modern narrative. A book of ancient and modern folklore, the stories we tell each other, and more importantly, the stories we tell ourselves. Duxie is a troubled savant. Haunted by the vampiric Mr Cassini, he travels the breadth of wales, trying to uncover his past by exploring its legends and myths. Part truth, part daydream, there's so much in this book - and the surprise ending is both original and unpredictable.

[Bill Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

10 days is not to bad for getting a used copy.