05/01/13: Nicola Barker – Darkmans (2007)


“Beede was the original architect of the unflinching stare. Beede’s stare was so steady he could make an owl crave Optrex.”

Shortlisted for the 2007 Booker Prize, this is a seemingly chaotic sprawl of characters and situations that somehow starts to fit together. The characters are particularly strong. It's funny, too. Nicola Barker has a real gift for language and phrasing that at times recalls (early) Martin Amis. It's a long book and is best read in big chunks so that you can digest the hugely imaginative scope of it and become totally immersed in the world it creates.