The Inflatable Volunteer

It's a lot of effort for a very short laugh though. Nov 27, Adam rated it really liked it Shelves: Aylett at his most unhinged. Usually peppers his books with scifi, fantasy, or noir elements and lots of satire so you pretend you understand what is happening. Probably better in small does, so keep by your bedside if you want this creepy babbling echoing in your head while you attempt to get some peace.

A catalogue of synapse-scorching similes any bankrupt Martian poet would kill for. Take notes, it will be easier to follow. Apr 10, Stephen Thomas rated it liked it. With an absence of either a conventional plot or narrative structure, it might prove too anarchic for some, but it is worth sticking with for several reasons. One is the humour. At times this book is hilarious simply because of the surreal juxtaposition of words and of ideas.

• Gus.
• Complainte des landes perdues - Cycle 1 - Tome 3 - DAME GERFAUT (French Edition);
• Rainy Day.
• Volunteer for The Great Inflatable Race.
• Death by Foreclosure.

Another reason to read this work is for its sheer chutzpah. The free-flowing nature of the frequently opaque prose never loses momentum and remains engaging all the way through. It never shows any lack of conviction and never falters. Read on, fearless reader, read on! Aug 31, Ken Bazley rated it really liked it Recommends it for: This is by far and away the most insane piece of literature I've ever laid my hands on.

Nothing, but nothing comes close insofar as headspin goes - honestly if it's pure mania you're after then look no further.

Firstly there's the dizzying vernacular and once you've grown accustomed to that you can have a go at figuring out the plot, and good luck with that by the way. It took me 4 attempts to even vaguely work out what the plot was and I'm still not sure. Guess I'll have to give it another go - This is by far and away the most insane piece of literature I've ever laid my hands on. Guess I'll have to give it another go - I'm sure there's something in there What else can I say? Has to be worth 3 stars alone just for sheer balls.

I've not read any of Aylett's other books and quite frankly I'm scared to. This book is a sinister brain-screw. It's one of those that I'm still not sure if I loved it or hated it. The onion-like layering was a nice effect but the text seems more like a stream of made-up idioms being hurled fervently from character to character--much like the 3-stooges on crack, standing on a street corner, pestering you with their nonsense while you wait for the bus to hell. But I think I'll re-read it soon to see if the text shifts the second time around.

May 07, Donald Armfield rated it it was amazing Shelves: Steve Aylett opens your skull and bashes your brain with a potatoe masher, he has this way of writting that makes you want to read more. I have no idea the plot of this book, maybe something about an election, but I will say you will laugh and wonder on every page. Mar 29, Adam Eivy rated it liked it.

This is one of those books that I'm not sure if I loved or hated. The onion-like layering was brilliant but the overall chaos of seemingly random bar-room babble threw me for a loop. This book probably screwed me up more than Finnegan's Wake. Dec 19, Chris rated it it was amazing. A zip gun loaded with the macabre, lyrical, psychedelic keys that unlock your head and stash something truly original in your gray goo. Aylett is a true original and also kind of funny. Apr 13, Leon RE rated it it was ok Shelves: A bit funny for its quirky lyricism, but for the life of me I could not understand what the heck was going on.

Mar 12, Stevie rated it really liked it. Not a book for everyone but if you'd like surrel aphoristic rollercoaster ride with stuff you'd written and want to quote forever then this is for you Jennifer rated it it was amazing Apr 29, Egor Laufer rated it it was amazing Jan 03, Oleg Potapov rated it it was amazing May 27, Rev Ian Strelzick rated it it was amazing Aug 26, Alexander Shtang rated it really liked it Mar 30, Duncan rated it liked it Feb 10, The shunt-thud of a blade to block's the nearest thing you'll get around here to a square shoulder or the nod of a head. Fashion and lawnmowers come out shining and everyone tightens their fists.

Aylett's narrator fits right in. He is no victim. He's involved, active, criminal. He starts out campaigning for the Mayor as sordid a business as there is, in Aylett's world or any other , and he winds up in front of a firing squad. And that's not the worst of it. There's the Minotaur, Bob, a devil he has to defend himself to, and a host of characters who don't quite see eye to eye with the narrator.

Paperback Editions

And there's Eddie, the hapless, hopeless friend who is there all along. Eddie has odd notions and ideas, get rich quick schemes and fancy dreams. Deluded from first to last, he retains a certain charming quality: Assailed by creditors and theological doubt, he spent two years cultivating hernias in a hydroponic glasshouse nursery, funneling his guilt and fear into a lifestyle of dissipation and gaudy excess. Aylett's book is surreal, but carefully constructed. After a chapter introducing the narrator's friend "Eddie" , there is a neat symmetry of chapters, one leading to the next.

Ten chapter headings run from "What I told Eddie" to "What I told the devil" with audiences of a priest, a shrink, a firing squad, and "every last bastard at the bar" along the way, among others. Then ten chapter headings run the same route back, from "Trouble with the devil" through "Trouble with Eddie", with all the same stations in between. The events recounted pretty much all fall into the category of the bizarre, as Aylett never misses an opportunity to twist even the banal into the grotesque.