Quick Review: THINKING ABOUT IT ONLY MAKES IT WORSE by David Mitchell (Faber)

A superb collection of Mitchell’s Observer columns

Why is my jumper depreciating? What’s wrong with calling a burglar brave? Why are people so f***ing hung up about swearing? Why do the asterisks in that sentence make it okay? Why do so many people want to stop other people doing things, and how can they be stopped from stopping them? Why is every film and TV programme a sequel or a remake? Why are we so reliant on perpetual diversion that someone has created chocolate toothpaste? Is there anything to be done about the Internet?

These and many other questions trouble David Mitchell as he delights us with a tour of the absurdities of modern life – from Ryanair to Downton Abbey, sports day to smoking, nuclear weapons to phone etiquette, UKIP to hotdogs made of cats. Funny, provocative and shot through with refreshing amounts of common sense, Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse celebrates and commiserates on the state of things in our not entirely glorious nation.

David Mitchell is a comedian, actor, writer and the polysyllabic member of Mitchell and Webb. He won BAFTAs for Peep Show and That Mitchell and Webb Look, and has also starred in Jam and Jerusalem, The Bleak Old Shop of Stuff and Ambassadors. He writes for the Observer, chairs TheUnbelievable Truth, is a team captain on Would I Lie To You? and has been in two films, neither of which made a profit.

I have long been a fan of David Mitchell’s television work – That Mitchell & Webb Look, Peep Show (which I was actually didn’t love at first), the all-too-short Ambassadors mini-series, and his frequent guest spots on QI and Have I Got News For You being my favourites. After I listened to the audio edition of his superb memoir, Back Story, my respect for him grew even more (it’s among my top ten ‘reads’ of the year, easily). I didn’t know how frequently he had been writing for the Observer, however, so I was pleasantly surprised when I received a review copy of Thinking About It Only Makes It Worse. This is a great read.

Star Wars in Rolling Stone

While perusing Rolling Stone’s website (something I do frequently), I spotted a link for “Star Wars in Rolling Stone”. It’s a collection of the articles from the magazine, beginning with an interview with George Lucas from 1977. They’re presented in reverse-chronology, so I’d start with the final page (linked above) and work from there.

One article in particular jumped out for me – partly because of the title – and that was from the June 12th, 1980 issue of the magazine (pictured): “Slaves to the Empire: The 'Star Wars' Kids Talk Back”, by Timothy White. The article is about (according to the standfirst):

“Five actors caught in the paradox of ‘Star Wars’ (the highest-grossing film of all time has done nothing for their careers) talk about their trap, the making of ‘The Empire Strikes Back’ and why they still want to be a part of the third installment”

It’s an interesting interview, more about their opinions about the movies, working on them, and where they came from, than about being “trapped” by the films’ success. It’s filled with some great trivia for die-hard Star Wars fans. For example: Carrie Fisher is quite mischievous, and suggests that Leia should have fallen for Chewbacca; Mark Hamill considered Luke to be the “classic thankless role”, confesses that he is a “serious collector” of Star Wars memorabilia, and amusingly bemoans the fact that the Luke dolls have been marked down in price for collectors; Anthony Daniels (C-3PO) explains why the first movie was a “miasma of pain”; Harrison Ford sheepishly admits that he’s “never been much of a film fan” but felt like Empire Strikes Back was "the first time I’ve ever seen anything I’ve done that I’m happy with".

The piece also addresses Mark Hamill’s car accident, and is actually the first time I’ve read anything about it:

“Hamill's anxiety about landing choice roles was tragically accelerated when his BMW ran off the freeway in 1977. Star Wars had not yet been released, and his face was sufficiently ravaged that he wondered whether he would be able to retain any part of his angular good looks, let alone fulfill the remainder of his three-picture deal with Lucas. That mental anguish was only intensified when the film proved to be an international smash.”

Reading these articles got me to thinking: has anyone written a book about the making of the movies? Not just big, photo-stuffed Coffee Table books (although, those are really nice, too), but a campaign-biography-style volume about the making of the original movies. I’d definitely read one of those.

Pure Genius from The ONION

The Onion News Network – Always On, Slighty Off…

More Condescension towards “Nerds”

The terrible New York Times and Slate reviews of HBO’s adaptation of George R.R. Martin’s Game of Thrones and what the authors had to say about fantasy and fantasy fans are very well known at this point, due to the viral circulation and quick and vociferous reaction they received around the internet. As it turns out, they are not the only news publications to print negative opinions or snide remarks about genre fiction and its fans.

“Embedded” by Dan Abnett (Angry Robot)

A journalist finds himself unprepared for a most unusual, potentially deadly predicament…

The colony planet of Eighty-Six looks as dull as all its fellow new worlds to veteran journalist Lex Falk, but when a local squabble starts to turn violent, and the media start getting the runaround from the military high command, his interest is seriously piqued.

Forbidden from approaching the battlezone, he gets himself chipped inside the head of a combat veteran – and uncovers the story of a lifetime. When the soldier is killed, however, Falk must use all his resourcefulness to get back home again… and blow the lid off the whole damn thing.

Since the Iraq War began in 2003, a lot has been made of the Pentagon’s willingness to allow journalists to “embed” themselves with combat groups, reporting from the frontlines how the war is going. In Embedded, Abnett takes this one step further, taking this theme and transferring it onto a hypothetical future of intergalactic expansion and journalism. It’s not only insightful and intelligent: it’s also a very satisfying and entertaining read.

Upcoming: Journalists getting in on Sci-Fi Action

Two novels coming out in the near future feature journalists embedded (in one form or another) with military units as their main protagonists. I’m surprised it’s taken so long for this premise to take hold, given the attention it received during the current Afghanistan and Iraq wars. In some ways, the Horus Heresy series from Black Library has adopted the idea of journalists accompanying military forces, but it was never really central to the story – rather, it was a device to portray the story.

In Dan Abnett’s Embedded and T.C. McCarthy’s Germline, the embedded journalist takes the top spot.

Having studied both international journalism and the role of the media in foreign policy, I think both of the novels sound pretty appealing. The idea of seeing conflicts from the frontlines, but from an outsider’s perspective, offers great scope for intelligent discussion of the nature of war, so transferred onto these speculative settings, we could be in for a real treat.

“The Fury”, by Jason Pinter (MIRA)

Henry Parker’s Fourth Outing Calls Closer to Home

Accosted by an unknown dishevelled junkie outside his office, Henry Parker is surprised when he is called to the city morgue to identify the murdered remains of same junkie – who happens to be his brother. Only problem is, Henry doesn’t have a brother, and never has as far as he’s known. The brother he never knew has been shot execution-style in a hole of an apartment in New York’s Alphabet City, his body wasted from hunger and drugs. Stephen Gaines was a man with whom Henry shared nothing except a father; a father who kept the secret from him up until Stephen’s death.

After confronting his father, who is promptly arrested for the murder, Henry finds himself sucked into a personal mission to discover who killed Stephen, and why. As his investigation leads down into the underbelly of New York and the drug world, he sets out on a dangerous path to hunt down a drug lord who may or may not be an urban myth.

With The Fury, Pinter’s ability to craft a fast-paced thriller, filled with emotion (and only just skirting the edge of schmaltz) and interesting twists and turns, remains firmly intact. There are, no doubt, many who might dismiss the Henry Parker series as throw-away crime fiction, but Pinter is better than that. His novels, set in New York and the world of journalism, are gripping and thrilling tales of a young, idealistic journalist with the worst luck in the world – or the best, given his profession and his front-line seat to so many front-page scoops. Pinter’s characters remain interesting and far from one-dimensional. Henry’s relationship with Amanda is on the mend, and his dealings with his father feel genuine and far from the teen-angst they could have been if written by another author.

There is real continuity within this series, as Pinter’s characters develop and grow with each passing novel. The Fury will leave you eager for the next instalment of Parker’s exploits. Pinter has written another novel that will entertain, surprise, and keep you guessing until the end.

This is a highly recommended series, and one I’ve been hooked to since its first instalment, The Mark.

[The Hunted, an ebook novella, and The Darkness are now available in the US, and will be reviewed here soon.]

For Fans of: John Sandford, James Patterson, David Ellis, Jack Kerley, Joseph Teller, Andrew Grosse, Peter de Jonge

Possibly the UK Cover, to be released in August 2010:

“American Outrage”, by Tim Green (Sphere)

Muck-Raking Journalism, Adoption, Political Corruption, and Old Money collide

Jake Carlson, a top TV journalist feeling his star wane, is asked by his adopted son to find his birth-mother. Still suffering from the death of his wife, Jake agrees to help Sam in the hope that it will help his son get closure, or help him cope with the death of his adopted mother (he’s been acting out in school, forced to see an “asshole” therapist).

Working for American Outrage, a show that rakes through the dirt and grime of American society (celebrities with a dollop of Jerry Springer, it seems), has given Jake many skills he’ll need to wade through the bureaucratic tides of information and roadblocks that are thrown up against him. But, Jake is stunned by what he unearths: an international crime syndicate, an illegal international adoption ring, and the corrupt-politician-patriarch of an old New York financial dynasty.

What first seemed like a simple task to help his son move on becomes a potential, career-defining scoop. However, as Jake digs deeper, taking his investigation further, those he is investigating start coming after him and Sam – the Armenian mob, the FBI, and on top of that, other journalists start sniffing around, hounding Jake and Sam for their story as well.

Considering Green’s position as a bestseller many times over, I have to admit to expecting a little more from American Outrage. It’s the first novel of Green’s that I’ve ever read, and I was hoping for something better. This is not to say that this is a bad novel – far from it, as there is plenty in here to interest and engage your every-day thriller fan. But, there was still something definitely missing; a certain x-factor to take it to the next level.

Green’s plotting and prose are fine, frequently well-paced, but there was something about the novel that failed to really hook me in. Perhaps it was the relationship between Jake and Sam – it didn’t feel like father-and-son, brothers, or friends, really. There was just something strange about the way their relationship had been written – forced, awkward to read, and just a little too strange for me to believe. Sam is also a weird kid. This was a serious pity; as I’ve mentioned, the premise and plotting is pretty good. What is interesting, however, are the dilemmas Jake faces when he uncovers information about Sam’s adoption – how much should he tell his son? How much should he know?

The story picks up about halfway through and you do get more involved in the events as the book progresses (the first half was just too slow and clunky), with some intense scenes, but it felt par-for-the-course and didn’t quite sizzle as much as some of the pull quotes would have us believe (they should always be taken with a pinch of salt, anyway).

I will admit to perhaps just not being in the right mood for this book when I read it, but having read many thrillers this one just didn’t live up to my expectations. I have another Green novel – his latest, Above the Law – which I shall read in the next few weeks, and hopefully that will make up for this slight disappointment. I shall keep you posted.

Once again, there is a good deal to recommend this novel – the plot, premise, writing, etc. – but for me the delivery was just missing something, even though it was still an enjoyable read in many places.

American Outrage has a few twists, some shocking moments (the lives of important characters are not always safe), and a second half that really picks up the pace and ratchets up the intensity – if you are patient and make it through the slightly plodding first half, you will be rewarded.

A cautious recommendation.

For fans of: Jason Pinter, Peter de Jonge, James Patterson, Nelson DeMille

“The Stolen”, by Jason Pinter (MIRA Books)

A kidnapped child returns home suddenly, and journalist Henry Parker is on the case

One day five years ago, Daniel Linwood disappeared. When he reappears, with no memory of those lost five years, he come under intense scrutiny from the media. Henry Parker, a reporter at the New York Gazette, is assigned to the story, by request of the boy’s family. Parker sets out to understand what has happened to the boy. Moving beyond the human-interest angle of the piece, he soon discovers that Danny is not unique, and that a string of children who were abducted have been returned to their families, all with the same amnesia of the years they were missing.

Along with intense, hostile scrutiny from the media establishment, Parker must tread carefully and navigate around the strange (and highly suspicious) opposition to him pursuing the wider story from the extremely-tough-on-crime New York Senator, Gray Talbot, who threatens to prosecute Henry and the Gazette if they take their investigation any further. This, coupled with a warning from his editor, naturally only heightens Parker’s desire to get to the bottom of the story, and find out what’s happening to these kids and where they’re being taken. With help from Amanda, a Legal Aid lawyer and his ex-girlfriend, he slowly pieces together the story.

Pinter’s writing and plotting continues to get better with each novel, and his protagonist grows ever-more mature and worldly as the series progresses. He is more comfortable in his job, a little jaded yet retaining the hunger and idealism of a newbie reporter. The novel details more of this life in New York, perhaps mirroring the author’s own experiences, with a bit of social commentary to add flavour and depth to the story.

The pace of the novel is slower to get started than The Mark and The Guilty, which really rattled along at a breakneck pace – though it does pick up considerably about half-way through. It seems that for this novel, Pinter felt more confident in his writing to allow the novel to unfold at its own pace, dwelling more on setting the scene and character development.

Pinter’s characters continue to be interesting to read about. While there are some standard thriller tropes the author makes use of (difficult childhoods, estranged parents, etc.), the characterisation still feels fresh and special. Henry, in particular, is a great ‘hero’, with his mix of idealism and naïveté, his tenacious desire to help the needy and so forth. It sounds clichéd and unoriginal, but Pinter has really created some very endearing characters, which makes this series so engaging and readable. One great character is Jack O’Donnell, the polar opposite of Henry: he is a hard-boiled, whisky-soaked, aging journo full of cynicism and combativeness, and works well in the story as a foil to Henry’s idealism, as he tries to make the younger reporter a bit tougher, steering him through the troubled waters of the craft.

Overall, this is an excellent thriller, with an interesting and realistic protagonist, and an engaging plot. The Stolen is good fun, gripping, and very well written.

An excellent addition to the series and genre as a whole, The Stolen is highly recommended (along with the rest of the series).

Henry Parker Series: The Mark (2007), The Guilty (2008), The Stolen (2009), The Fury (2009)

“The Mark” & “The Guilty”, by Jason Pinter (MIRA Books)

The first two volumes from one the most promising new voices in Thriller writing

Jason Pinter’s The Mark introduces us to rookie reporter Henry Parker, as he starts his dream job at the fictitious New York Gazette (based on, I assume, the New York Times). Sent on a simple assignment by his idol and new mentor – Jack O’Donnell – Parker finds himself in a fatal altercation after trying to help a couple, only to result in the death of what turns out to be a New York cop. What follows is his harrowing journey to discover just what he’s got himself involved in, and why so many people seem to want to put a bullet in him. His dash for freedom introduces him to Amanda Davies, who become tied up with Parker’s quest for redemption, not to mention something of a love interest.

The Guilty picks up pretty much where The Mark left off, with Parker now back at the Gazette and still working as a journalist, his reputation more-or-less intact. Then people start dying. A sniper is on the loose, taking the lives of seemingly innocent people. Parker’s nose for a good story sets him on a collision course with the sniper, who has a deep interest in vintage weaponry and a seemingly all-consuming interest in the Wild West… Parker’s investigation into the killer’s motives put his friends and loved-ones in harm’s way, and it becomes a race against time as Parker (with the help of O’Donnell again) tries to help prevent each new murder. All this, while his journalistic nemesis Paulina Cole takes shots at him from her rival newspaper, the New York Dispatch.

Pinter’s writing style is superb throughout both of these novels. His prose are extremely tight, pulling you along with the characters, as he ratchets up the tension and excitement – dangling just enough information to keep you hooked. There is no doubt that the word “thriller” is most apt in these two instances. All of Pinter’s characters are realistic, colourful (but still believable), and well-constructed – from the slightly damaged Amanda, to Jack O’Donnell (the classic, whisky-soaked and cynical old journalist, who comes to consider Parker as a surrogate son). You certainly come to care about the characters – not least because of the sheer amount of abuse Parker is subjected to during both of the novels.

Having a journalist as a main protagonist is a great change from the standard cop or PI approaches (not that these are bad, mind you); it allows Pinter to take his characters in a new direction and gives the reader a new perspective of what can happen when such news-worthy crimes occur. It’s also allowed Pinter to discuss (perhaps) his opinion of the state of journalism in America – as Paulina Cole writes about Parker, in The Mark, journalists are increasingly becoming the story, with almost the same level of celebrity as those they write about, diminishing the respectability and quality of journalism. I thought this was an interesting touch, for the background of the novel.

If I had to locate his style and skill within the Thriller genre, I would say he is a mixture of James Patterson’s better qualities (pacing, especially) and John Sandford’s quality and plotting. My one criticism is related: like Patterson, Pinter’s style of writing relationships can be a little too sugary or melodramatic – this is especially the case for Henry and Amanda’s relationship in The Guilty. It’s a minor gripe, but it’s still valid.

Truly one of the best new writers in the genre. Pinter should enjoy a long and successful career. If you like your thrillers fast-paced, exciting and expertly executed, The Mark and The Guilty could not come more highly recommended. Addictive reading.

(The Mark is out now, and The Guilty will be released on December 12th)

For fans of: Brett Battles, David Baldacci, John Sandford, James Patterson, Alex Berenson, Jack Kerley, Lee Child, Marcus Sakey