Robert Rankin

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 17 Jan 2012, 03:02

Has anyone read much Robert Rankin? He is one of the funniest authors about, but maybe his humour is too English for some. Any Comments please. Favourite Rankin book?

Ant · Post by **Ant** » 17 Jan 2012, 17:38

pawpoint wrote:Has anyone read much Robert Rankin? He is one of the funniest authors about, but maybe his humour is too English for some. Any Comments please. Favourite Rankin book?

Sorry Pawpoint, can't remember ever reading any Rankin books, but I like funny books and I am English so I will add him to my list of "musts".
What would you recommend I start with ?

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 18 Jan 2012, 02:33

My favourite book is Raiders of The Lost Car Park, but that is part of a series (not that it matters) that starts with The Most Amazing Man that Ever Lived. You could also try Roberts latest book The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age. Other classics include Snuff Fiction, Nostradamus Ate my Hamster, The Brentford Trilogy (now about 8 books in the series!), The Witches of Chiswick. If I dont stop, I will write down all 34 of them. I have read them all over and over.

Ant · Post by **Ant** » 18 Jan 2012, 15:32

pawpoint wrote:My favourite book is Raiders of The Lost Car Park, but that is part of a series (not that it matters) that starts with The Most Amazing Man that Ever Lived. You could also try Roberts latest book The Mechanical Messiah and Other Marvels of the Modern Age. Other classics include Snuff Fiction, Nostradamus Ate my Hamster, The Brentford Trilogy (now about 8 books in the series!), The Witches of Chiswick. If I dont stop, I will write down all 34 of them. I have read them all over and over.

Thanks, really looking forward to this now.

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 02 Feb 2012, 04:01

Let us know how you get on with them.

Maud Fitch · Post by **Maud Fitch** » 02 Feb 2012, 06:18

After reading your challenge to Fran on the Jasper Fforde thread, I'm intrigued and will definitely be following up on your Robert Rankin suggested reading list. For me, there is no such thing as 'too English' because I love their tongue-in-cheek style of humour.

(Note: If you can get Scott or Stephen Kingman to transfer this thread over to the Authors Forum, we can have an 'author-o-thon' and compare notes).

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 03 Feb 2012, 05:18

Maud Fitch wrote:After reading your challenge to Fran on the Jasper Fforde thread, I'm intrigued and will definitely be following up on your Robert Rankin suggested reading list. For me, there is no such thing as 'too English' because I love their tongue-in-cheek style of humour.

(Note: If you can get Scott or Stephen Kingman to transfer this thread over to the Authors Forum, we can have an 'author-o-thon' and compare notes).

I have sent Scott a request. Hopefully the battle will be on! I am really looking forward to the delivery of my first Jasper Fforde book.

Maud Fitch · Post by **Maud Fitch** » 03 Feb 2012, 05:54

pawpoint wrote:I have sent Scott a request. Hopefully the battle will be on! I am really looking forward to the delivery of my first Jasper Fforde book.

Sounds good to me! After visiting the library, I have borrowed the only novels available at the moment "The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalypse" and "The Japanese Devil Fish Girl And Other Unnatural Attractions" to whet my appetite. "Raiders Of The Lost Carpark" is on hold. Friends have told me that Rankin's content is more, er, adult than Fforde's but both are hilarious.

(PS: Just discovered that Rankin is FVSS, a fellow of the Victorian steampunk society, love it!)

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 03 Feb 2012, 06:12

Probably founded it knowing Robert!

-- 03 Feb 2012, 06:39 --

Maud Fitch wrote:
pawpoint wrote:I have sent Scott a request. Hopefully the battle will be on! I am really looking forward to the delivery of my first Jasper Fforde book.
Sounds good to me! After visiting the library, I have borrowed the only novels available at the moment "The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalypse" and "The Japanese Devil Fish Girl And Other Unnatural Attractions" to whet my appetite. "Raiders Of The Lost Carpark" is on hold. Friends have told me that Rankin's content is more, er, adult than Fforde's but both are hilarious.

(PS: Just discovered that Rankin is FVSS, a fellow of the Victorian steampunk society, love it!)

Hollow Chocolate bunnies is not his best, but still funny. Weird writing from Toytown though!

-- 03 Feb 2012, 06:40 --

Read Japanese Devil Fish Woman first.

Maud Fitch · Post by **Maud Fitch** » 04 Feb 2012, 01:43

Okay, took your advice and loving it so far! I think further down the track we may be discussing the Big Three: Rankin, Fforde and Pratchett.

pawpoint · Post by **pawpoint** » 04 Feb 2012, 05:50

Just got The Eyre Affair through the post this morning. Time to put James Patterson book aside

Maud Fitch · Post by **Maud Fitch** » 07 Feb 2012, 04:37

pawpoint wrote:Just got The Eyre Affair through the post this morning. Time to put James Patterson book aside

How's it going, Pawpoint?

Since this is my first Robert Rankin novel and I’m only half-way through, I thought I’d jot down a few comments as I progress. I’m reading “The Japanese Devil Fish Girl And Other Unnatural Attractions”.

So far I’m enjoying the plot and I think it's written in the steampunk genre to a certain degree then sci-fi fantasy.
An off pickled Martian, Jupiterian and Venusian aliens abound, monkey butlers, Winston Churchill, P T Barnum, a young Adolph H and various historic names are scattered throughout the pages. There’s a reference to Sherlock Holmes on page 159 in a style reminiscent of Jasper Fforde.

In 1885, sideshow conman Professor Cagliostro Coffin slowly reveals his plans for his assistant (and the protagonist) George Fox. Yes, I did find the beginning a tad slow but it improves. A love interest by the name of Ada Lovelace is introduced and mayhem ensues when they all meet on a sky-ship Empress Of Mars, whose billboard cleverly announces “Around the world in seventy-nine days.” Quite an impressive flying machine where things start hotting up, literally.

Once I adjusted to Rankin’s writing style, the story flowed more easily for me. However, some of his lists distract me, e.g. page 85 where he details the luggage the glitterati take onboard the air-ship “ladies dressing cases, perfumes, powders, lipstick, smelling bottles, gloves, hankies...” etc, or page 184 “metaphysical, elliptical navigation, aethers, a polymorphic endochromatica, calcification...” rather Dr Who-like; and on page 211 when the travellers reach a sacred temple, he lets fly with copious comparisons of other temples around the world.

Rankin’s tilt at racism is well done and references to movie and historical events are cleverly interwoven. He does his own impressive illustrations, too. All in all, I’d have to say I haven’t laughed out loud yet but it’s rollicking along.

Fran · Post by **Fran** » 10 Feb 2012, 18:51

I've just finished 'The Witches of Chiswick' & I am of much the same opinion as Maud. While there certainly are laughs and some superb examples of a wicked imagination, overall I can't honestly say I loved it. Maud is absolutely right about the long lists ... reminded me of some of Ulysses! .... and I found myself wanting to skip over whole paragraphs.
I will probably still read 'Knees Up Mother Earth' because I have it from the library but I don't think I will be a long term fan of Mr Rankin.
Sorry pawpoint but I'll be sticking with Jasper

Maud Fitch · Post by **Maud Fitch** » 12 Feb 2012, 21:53

Well, Pawpoint, I’ve finished “The Japanese Devil Fish Girl And Other Unnatural Attractions” and have to say it was good but just didn’t quite hit the mark for me. Rankin's other books may have more appeal but the comic relief in this one is monkey butler Darwin so it doesn't say much for the characters.

Minor point but whilst the ‘Girl’ was explained, her name was never satisfactorily explained. And why the heck George Fox was chosen by this deity to save the world was a mystery. Also, I started off liking Ada Lovelace until half way through she became a wimpy appendage of George Fox and didn’t quite buck up after that.

I did like the alien cloud-ships of Magonia and there were flashes of cleverness, like the destruction of London’s Crystal Palace and part demolition of St Paul’s Cathedral. However, the overtones of spiritualism, religion, devotion, faith and belief were really stretching it in the universal peace stakes.

On the whole I think there were a lot of good leads which Rankin could have followed up to bring together a story which tended to meander along before coming to the inevitable kids vid conclusion. Then again, he did dedicate this book to his grandson Connor.....

Gannon · Post by **Gannon** » 13 Feb 2012, 02:22

@Fran & Maud

I think I will put off reading Rankin for now, after the lacklustre reviews and my overflowing TBR list I will give them a miss for the moment. You guys know how much I value your opinions.