Book
Reviews:
Uncut
by Christopher
Fowler
(Warner, 412
pgs, p/b)
![['Uncut' cover]](uncut.jpg)
This is a collection
of 21 short stories, collated by the author himself, spanning his career
to date. Fowler is a writer who specialises in suburban terror stories, shot
through with the blackest humour. Fowler's vehement introduction (in which
is rips into the 'fake' Dickensian high street of Rochester in Kent) sets
out the author's somewhat cynical take on society and how it likes to present
itself and its history. (It would be interesting to see Fowler's take on
some famous events in Britain's past.) What follows are brief excursions
into sometimes the slightly odd and sometimes the deliciously insane and
surreal.
A story about a visit
to the dentist is typical of Fowler's approach. He'll take an everyday occurance
and take it into a direction best only visited by those with a sound
constitution. In this instance, he goes way over the top (even by his
standards) and the piece is less a 'story' than an exercise in describing
gore in fine detail. I knew the resolution to Master Builder because
I'd seen the American TV movie that was based upon it a few years earlier.
Perfect Casting is a predictable, sub-Tales of The
'Unexpected' entry lacking both an explanation and any sense of
suspense - one wonders why Fowler chose to include it?, and the gloriously-titled
Norman Wisdom and the Angel of Death, fleetingly reminded me
of the film The Young Poisoner's Handbook.
South East London crops
up frequently in these short stories, and Bad Day at Black Rock features
Abbey Wood and Blackheath - both of which are stations on my daily train
journey into work and both of which (as if by some weird fatalistic twist)
I passed through as I read the story! Bad Day at Black Rock is a fine
example of Fowler at his best. Better than most here because the tale is
more personal, seemingly drawing more directly from his own childhood. One
suspects that aspects of this short story are actually true. It's also one
of the least 'fantastic' entries - grounded as it is in the real world of
attending secondary school in the suburbs. In marked contrast to Bad
Day... is the superb Chang-Siu and the Blade of Grass - set in
ancient China, perfectly showcasing Fowler's impressive ability to write
in strikingly differing styles.
Thirteen Places
of Interest in Kentish Town not only boast a brilliant concept but is
tremendously clever and very witty. It is written as one of those travel
guides you pick up from local tourist offices that guide you past historical
local buildings while providing some detail on their earlier uses and occupants.
Without saying too much, this unexceptional document gradually points to
an extraordinary sequence of events that one might not suspect from the seemingly
innocuous exteriors the reader passes by. Thirteen Places... is one
of the best short stories I have ever had the pleasure to read. There
are a handful of duds in this collection and with a total 21 stories running
to over 400 pages the weakest ones could easily have been lost to the benefit
of the book as a whole. At the same time, there are some remarkable entries
here that fully justify the praise heaped upon this great English writer.
Rob
Dyer
A-Z
of Book Reviews