Thursday, October 13, 2005

Maybe you should skim through: Dan Leno and the Limehouse Golem.

By Peter Ackroyd. Not to be confused with Peter Carey, who wrote the intermittently hilarious Oscar and Lucinda.

Why'd I read it? 1. Recommended highly by Histrionix, who knows his way around good writing. 2. Super title. (This was before I learnt that it had been previously published as The Trial of Elizabeth Cree.) 3. A cast of real-life characters like Dan Leno (a British comedian billed "The Funniest Man on Earth") and Karl Marx (yes, the 'opium of the masses' guy)

Why'd I put it down feeling vaguely dissatisfied? Tough one, but I suspect it has to do with fabulous characters working their way towards a less-than-fabulous end. Left me thinking more about the writer, than the book -- never a good sign.

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