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Mister Roberts
Book by Alexei Sayle
180 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
5 people are currently reading
67 people want to read
About the author
Alexei Sayle
35 books71 followersAlexei Sayle is an English stand-up comedian, actor, author and former recording artist, and was a central figure in the British alternative comedy movement in the 1980s.
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Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews
August 1, 2016
Mister Roberts is the kind of book that I'd recommend to any friend who is feeling down and needs something light and funny to cheer themselves up. This novella (it's about 180 pages long) is a simple, but highly imaginative story that takes no time at all to get stuck into it, and before you know it, you're already approaching the last page.
The story is set in Spain within a small English ex-pat community, and one day they experience an encounter with an alien robot from outer space. It's wacky and filled with humorous one-liners as you'd expect from Alexei Sayle, so just go with the flow and don't take it too seriously!
The story is set in Spain within a small English ex-pat community, and one day they experience an encounter with an alien robot from outer space. It's wacky and filled with humorous one-liners as you'd expect from Alexei Sayle, so just go with the flow and don't take it too seriously!
July 4, 2018
I'm sorry to say I didn't really enjoy this book. I'm a fan of Alexi Sayle's absurdist humour which works really well when he is discussing his working class roots in Manchester, but when he strays into sci-fi the absurdist aspect of his jokes fall a bit flat. It also read a bit like a first draft.
I'm still a fan but I'll stick to his stand-up from now on.
I'm still a fan but I'll stick to his stand-up from now on.
April 8, 2020
I adored this. It actually made me laugh out loud in a couple of places. It's a strange little novella with a weird plot but it works so well. The characters are great. It's beautifully paced. It was an absolute delight to read.
November 7, 2017
Sometimes funny, sometimes predictable, occasionally smug and mildly sneery; recovered quite well from its uh oh...he's channelling Douglas Adams moment. An easy home win for absurdity over edginess.
October 4, 2018
very enjoyable.
May 4, 2020
If you are a fan of Alexie Sayle as I am then you will find much to enjoy in this coming of age story, seen through the eyes of a boy driving an alien exo-suit disguised as a bouncer-type man who, well I won't give away any more than that, you will just have to read it for yourself.
November 25, 2020
I liked this, it was easy to read and an interesting story. Definitely not War and Peace but very readable!
January 16, 2011
I read this as part of my Book Club.
It’s really difficult to know what to say about this book, because it doesn’t really feel like it’s a completed story.
It’s pretty short (only 192 pages in paperback format – although I was Kindle-ing it!) and that seems to be part of the problem. A lot of the ideas within it were really good, but simply didn’t feel like they were explored enough.
Being such a short story, it’s difficult to give a summary without giving away half the story but, it is set in Andalucia, in a village where everyone knows everyone else, and within a group of a few characters who are all ex-pats.
It centres around a 13 year old English boy who lives with his young mum. One night, a strange craft crashes into the deserted hills near the village and he makes a fascinating discovery. After the initial excitement, his mum seems to ruin his enjoyment of his ‘gift from the heavens’, using it instead to feed her own reckless lifestyle.
The story really does have it all – aliens, gypsies, ex-pats, robots, animal communication, bullying, doppelgangers and violence for example, but it feels like none of the elements are explored to fruition. This kind of left all of us thinking “Oh!” at the end and a little unfulfilled.
Worth a read just for the sheer surreality of it – I could see it being a really fun film, but again, the storyline would need to be padded out a bit!
rating it is difficult, as the story / idea is really good, and it is very easy to read, but it doesn't feel 'finished'.
It’s really difficult to know what to say about this book, because it doesn’t really feel like it’s a completed story.
It’s pretty short (only 192 pages in paperback format – although I was Kindle-ing it!) and that seems to be part of the problem. A lot of the ideas within it were really good, but simply didn’t feel like they were explored enough.
Being such a short story, it’s difficult to give a summary without giving away half the story but, it is set in Andalucia, in a village where everyone knows everyone else, and within a group of a few characters who are all ex-pats.
It centres around a 13 year old English boy who lives with his young mum. One night, a strange craft crashes into the deserted hills near the village and he makes a fascinating discovery. After the initial excitement, his mum seems to ruin his enjoyment of his ‘gift from the heavens’, using it instead to feed her own reckless lifestyle.
The story really does have it all – aliens, gypsies, ex-pats, robots, animal communication, bullying, doppelgangers and violence for example, but it feels like none of the elements are explored to fruition. This kind of left all of us thinking “Oh!” at the end and a little unfulfilled.
Worth a read just for the sheer surreality of it – I could see it being a really fun film, but again, the storyline would need to be padded out a bit!
rating it is difficult, as the story / idea is really good, and it is very easy to read, but it doesn't feel 'finished'.
April 29, 2013
This book is marketed as being hilarious and obviously that's what you would expect when the author is Alexei Sayle. There certainly are a lot of little one liners and clever little comedic and satirical references, however this book made me feel rather sad rather than having me rolling in the aisles. The storyline and the characters are a slightly depressing reflection of the modern life, even though the setting is basically what most people would consider to be the "almost within reach" dream.
I thought it was cleverly put together, it is an interesting tale and a decent short book for a bit of light, if not light-hearted, reading. The style is a little like a children's book so it's definitely not challenging from that perspective.
I thought it was cleverly put together, it is an interesting tale and a decent short book for a bit of light, if not light-hearted, reading. The style is a little like a children's book so it's definitely not challenging from that perspective.
February 21, 2017
Mister Roberts starts out as a tale of British expats in bucolic Spain. Then Sayle pulls a mind-snapping narrative shift, yanking the reader into an extra-terrestrial space battle. To which the only response can be WTF?
Soon things become clearer, as a robot escapes from the battle and winds up in bucolic Spain with one of the expat kids. His mother soon cottons on to the benefits of having a human-looking indestructible robot on her arm, and prevails on her son to use him for her own purposes. Mayhem ensues.
This is an OK farce, with a few giggles. Nothing fantastic, but a diverting read.
Soon things become clearer, as a robot escapes from the battle and winds up in bucolic Spain with one of the expat kids. His mother soon cottons on to the benefits of having a human-looking indestructible robot on her arm, and prevails on her son to use him for her own purposes. Mayhem ensues.
This is an OK farce, with a few giggles. Nothing fantastic, but a diverting read.
July 28, 2011
Entertaining short novel set among expatriates in Spain who are disrupted by a terminator-like mechanoid from outer space. Nowhere near as stupid as that plot summary makes it sound! I particularly enjoyed a very long-delayed punchline which brackets the main narrative. The story's narrator (in a state of shock) decides he has to offload on someone and finally finds a random stranger who looks like he will understand. The story of Mister Roberts is then unfolded. Only in the last page of the novel do you realise who the person was who was having the story told to him.
April 22, 2012
Once again Alexei visits Spain, and this time he goes there with an alien robot. I'm sure it's the village from the dog catcher. The books none the worse for this, great characters, straight from a BBc sketch show, everyone could have a book of their own.
Laugh you will.
For my Indie reviews http://www.jeremypoole.net/blog.html
Laugh you will.
For my Indie reviews http://www.jeremypoole.net/blog.html
February 20, 2009
Bonkers. Easy, light read. I like Alexei Sayle's writing, even if it's nonsense.
April 19, 2010
What a great read! A quirky story about ex-pats and aliens in Spain written in the usuual Alexei Sayle way full of one liners and observations. And at under 200 pages a nice quick read!!
August 11, 2011
This is Alexei Sayle's best book to date - very clever satire - but I'd expect no less at this point.
June 10, 2012
another good book from sayle, some laugh out loud passages and absurd humour aplenty
October 19, 2012
This book was alright, I picked it up from the library based on the cover and nothing else really, it wasn't a bad book but I've definitely read better
May 8, 2013
More wacky ideas and perceptive insights from Alexei Sayle's weird imagination. Funny and distinctive.
July 8, 2014
An intriguing look at the way the sudden acquisition of power affects people in different ways. A short and enjoyable book, but I found the writing to be a bit clumsy.
October 26, 2016
Another fine one from Mr Sayle... the usual mix of the absurd and the political. Great observations on the Brits abroad...
April 13, 2011
superb
Displaying 1 - 21 of 21 reviews