Comments on: A.L. Kennedy: What Becomes

By: Acts of Faith: A.L. Kennedy’s “Original Bliss” « shigekuni.

Wed, 28 Apr 2010 22:53:55 +0000

[…] now, and my favorites among her books continue to shift. As a new collection of stories is about to be published, I took the opportunity of rereading one of her old ones. While Indelible Acts is my […]

By: Stewart

Stewart — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 00:25:04 +0000

I saw that article. I suppose when shops get books in, it makes more sense for them to be getting cash in the till rather than sitting on them. To this effect I’ve picked up Thomas Pynchon’s Inherent Vice, the paperback of Philip Roth’s Indignation, and the reissue of Bohumil Hrabal’s Dancing Lessons For The Advaned In Age - all, along with the Kennedy, expect to hit shelves officially on the 6th August.

Jonathan Cape sent me this book back in June. It wasn’t even a proof. So they’ve been off the press for quite a bit of time; no wonder Kennedy has seen copies about ahead of ‘publication’ proper.

By: obooki

obooki — Wed, 05 Aug 2009 00:18:55 +0000

I notice in the Guardian today AL Kennedy claims this book hasn’t officially been released yet, even though people seem to be able to buy it in shops.

Re: the Austrian State prize, it is strange how immensely respected AL Kennedy’s work seems to be in the German speaking world (releases of her novels seem to be events over there), while she’s (still) fairly ignored over her.

By: Guy Savage

Guy Savage — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 01:13:30 +0000

Thanks, I have a couple of Kennedys sitting on my shelf and this encourages me to get a move on.

By: Stewart

Stewart — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 13:45:52 +0000

Hope you like it, Tom. It’s not out until early August, so you may have a short wait from your library. Still, there’s four more collections available for now.

I didn’t hear her on Radio 4, but that’s only because I don’t listen to the radio at all, with the exception of I’m Sorry I Haven’t A Clue via BBC iPlayer.

Short stories are something I’m trying to find a better taste for. To that, I’ve got a bunch of collections waiting to be read. And I’m looking forward to them.

By: Tom C

Tom C — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 08:09:52 +0000

This is one I must read as I really enjoyed her novel Day. I’m also trying to read more short stories, so I’ve ordered this from the library. Did you hear her on R4’s PM programme last month as one of their spoof the people’s choice of speaker of the house of commons? She sounds like a great lady

By: Stewart

Stewart — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:48:30 +0000

That would be hard for me to say, Max, because, as I say above, other than a couple of short stories from her first collection, Night Geometry And The Garscadden Train, this book is all I’ve read. So it’s as good a place as any, I suppose.

With short story collections there’s always going to be ones you like and ones you don’t, unless some alchemy binds them all in brilliance, so you’re at least going to be partially satisfied. Not like a novel, where it’s a singular thing to be liked, disliked, or given a shrug of the shoulder, punctuated by a “meh!”

By: Max Cairnduff

Max Cairnduff — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 19:43:10 +0000

Nice review Stewart, I’ve been interested in trying Kennedy for a little while now, would you recommend this as a place to start?

By: steffee

steffee — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 13:10:07 +0000

Poor Frank. Poor all of them. It sounds quite depressing. Although you say it has a mix of “melancholy”, “funny” and “uplifting”, it certainly sounds more the melancholy.