Intriguing ...
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... enough to keep on reading though utterly mind-boggling up to the very end.
It does include a fair amount of Blackadder-like dialogue, as I was hoping for, and a good deal of prep school and college banter. Correct, "No matter how much you shake it, the last drop always runs down you leg" is not Walton's Third Law, I do believe its Newton's Fourth since it has to do with gravity!?
Not an easy read - the upper end of the English language is thoroughly exploited if not directly challenged.
There's quite a lot of "gay stuff" as well. Skirting the invisible boundary Fry manages to stay on the right side of decency. If you are easily offended by sexual innuendo don't even bother.
Through a delicate balance between "funny ha ha" and "funny peculiar" Stephen Fry "lies" his way - in some respects I sincerely hope he does - through a very entertaining story that turns out to be a mystery worthy of Hercule Poirot himself.
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Sorry I didn't get it!
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I love Stephen Fry and really enjoyed 'Moab is my Washpot' so I was keen to read 'The Liar'. I was influenced to buy it after reading all the reviews on Amazon - it is this that made me want to provide my own review, as a counter-balance to all those who liked the book.
Firstly, I found the main character, Adrian Healey, utterly unlikeable. I wasn't interested in him, or his bizarre behaviour, so didn't really care what happened to him. I didn't particularly warm to any of the others, either. The humour derived from mocking the snobbery of the public school system is short-lived and not worth the wait.
I didn't see the point of the italicized chapters until towards the end of the book - by which time I was past caring.
The dénouement is very clever but I still felt cheated. I felt the whole thing could have been wrapped up much more quickly and would have made a more concise (and more interesting) short story, rather than a novel. By the end (particularly during the dull as dishwater cricket match) I was skim-reading - yet I still got the plot! Hardly the sign of a good novel.
It's a shame as, if this had been my first Stephen Fry book, I'd never pick up another. I'd recommend 'Moab is my Washpot' to anyone new to Fry's writings.
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Almost Interesting...
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I should preface this by saying 'I love Stephen Fry.' Despite being a heterosexual male, I would quite happily marry him just so I could enjoy a lifetime of his mild manners and witty repartees.
This being said, since I discovered Amazon's 'review' function I've tried to dissect books as objectively as possible. Therefore, I have to confess that The Liar was slightly disappointing for me.
Don't get me wrong: It's fantastically written. Fry's mastery of the language is quite simply art in motion, and the insight the work provides into the man himself is fascinating.
However... it's not very good, really.
I'm all for unconventional plot devices and disregarding standard narrative flow, but Fry's attempts at a disjointed style are immensely unsatisfying. Jumping between past and present interrupts the characters' natural development, and makes the story hard to follow. It also makes it hard to keep track of the sheer number of characters that Fry throws in.
Another issue I have is that Fry doesn't utilise his protaganist's compulsive lying tendencies enough. The parts where the character is lying - and is revealed to be as such at the end - are removed from the plot, so when his falsehoods are later revealed it is a massive anti-climax, as they have no bearing on what has actually occured during the novel.
Overall, I feel that this is a weak first attempt. It is certainly worth reading, but Fry has written far superior works to this. Therefore, I can't really recommend it, but will instead advise purchasing 'Moab is my Washpot', which is in essence a more impressive version of this. It also has the advantage of being a true autobiography, instead of vaguely wielding the autobiographical elements that make The Liar appealing. Or, if you'd rather read Fry's best fictional work, go for The Hippopotamus: although a strong stomach is required to get through it.
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Weird definitely weird
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After reading this book I felt confused. Yes it was funny in places and Mr Fry's literary style and prowess are undoubted. Why then can't he write a novel that coherently follows a storyline instead of flitting about like a fly on the proverbial griddle. It seems like he has written down all the points he wants to get across then got them to the publishers without sorting them into order as he was running out of time.
If this is his life story as some seem to suspect no wonder he is depressed. I was after reading it!
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The journey is more enjoyable than the arrival
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This is beautifully written and bears all the hallmarks of Fry's familiar delivery. I heartily recommend it. I have given just 4 stars out of 5 as I didn't feel particularly satisfied by the ending but I had very much enjoyed getting there. It's the first Fry novel I've read and I am certainly encouraged to read more of them.
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