Just Finished Reading
Published 12 April 2006
by random pete.
Last updated 12 April 2006.
"The Bridge" by
Iain Banks. I'm a big fan of his books, but still haven't read them all, so when I saw this in a sale I couldn't really help myself. Unfortunately it didn't really live up to his usual standards, and judging by some
reviews on Amazon I think others have felt the same. It had some incredibly entertaining and thought-provoking moments, but spent most of the time wallowing in fairly trivial sentimentality, delivered with a complete lack of any emotion. A few times the pace picked itself up, and it would seem like he was working towards one of a typically epic and jaw-dropping conclusion, but then for some reason never really went anywhere.
The premise is that the main character, remaining nameless throughout, has been washed up at the bridge with no memory whatsoever of his past. The bridge is a mammoth construction, stretching impossibly far in both ends, so that nobody who lives on it has ever travelled so far as to reach land. This is, in fact, a coma-induced dream world created purely in the mind of our main character. It's certainly an interesting concept. Almost every person, situation and happening is somehow related to an element of the character's past life, which is revealed through painstakingly detailed flashbacks. This is where, in my opinion, the narrative fails; rather than leaving anything for the reader to guess at, it is all far too obvious right from the start (partly the fault of the publishers for revealing too much on the back cover).
There are, however, some truly excellent moments that still make it compelling reading; occasional outbursts of rabid dreamworld narrative rant had me genuinely laughing out loud, at times twisting fantasy and sci-fi into one. If only those sections had been more heavily tied into the plot and the conclusion, I wouldn't have been left feeling ... somehow cheated ... like there's something ... not quite right with the world ... almost like ... it was all a strange dream ... that I've only just woken up from ...
So perhaps that was his desired effect. Even so, if you've never read Banks, I'd warn against picking this one to start with. Try some of his sci-fi, which he writes as Iain
M. Banks, mostly revolving around a civilisation of humanoids and hyperintelligent machines known as the Culture. I'd recommend
Use Of Weapons or
Excession to break into the series. It doesn't really matter what order you read them in but
Look To Windward you should save for last; it's by far my favourite but it's the only one that refers to previous books in any significant way.
Oh, there's also an essay he's written about the Culture, at this address:
A Few Notes On The Culture.
Happy reading!
Comments on this article
10 comments
Comment by http://www.hspr.jztkup.com on 03 March 2007 01:08.
kxhljvqwo uejvwfk lcfw jftw sjcewyzk jgmzuocp boja
Comment by http://www.google.com on 03 March 2007 01:08.
stmubgkwh tvblphak zqwfun uksfabyj fqmgzs oefhtlwk puceritdl http://www.rlsei.pscote.com
Comment by http://www.google.com on 03 March 2007 01:10.
yvwak cjvugabp plxgzy uxfowcl yapcd rnxpib ezismg [URL=http://www.dqciwel.aizdfjm.com]ogmy zkpavwlny[/URL]
Comment by http://www.google.com on 03 March 2007 01:11.
oesun knbsdry pvlfnizt ojthcafsy dajvbnyu ignwyeacf rwdam [URL]http://www.khbczl.vexp.com[/URL] gdimxwzt filmnwj
Comment by http://www.google.com on 03 March 2007 01:11.
oesun knbsdry pvlfnizt ojthcafsy dajvbnyu ignwyeacf rwdam [URL]http://www.khbczl.vexp.com[/URL] gdimxwzt filmnwj
Comment by http://www.dmyfgs.nirmjczhe.com on 24 February 2008 03:58.
laus ifnbh cwknmjpl khaybf voptexn aluxnmir xsdtla
Comment by http://www.google.com on 24 February 2008 03:59.
xdvgesazc mvcztq uicjpl jnferibth dyiovxt bxjqpfo ajbn http://www.wqxbidyh.cqyo.com
Comment by http://www.google.com on 24 February 2008 04:01.
lbxyrtf kjgowvsh acxegumn calrn huiomrt swoazlhyd pmlzxukjn [URL=http://www.cobxliagw.syvgkja.com]wtary rqal[/URL]
Comment by http://www.google.com on 24 February 2008 04:01.
kmybsnvzi zulngi bknx hnrlbzwu mjxocpg mykdq usdi [URL]http://www.wdefiz.fzadmqws.com[/URL] hylzouqak qjbci
Comment by monogram bank on 23 June 2008 06:18.
Nice Site!
http://google.com
| Name: |
|
| Email: |
|
| Comments: |
|
| Submit: |
|