false <![CDATA[Heavy Water and Other Stories]]> http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1167388962m/23037.jpg 23037 15 These nine stories span a period from 1975 to 1997 and are a good reflection of the range of Martin Amis's writing, which is always skillful and consistently seductive--sometimes irritatingly so. Amis lures his reader into an intense interest in his characters, and then, in some unsettling way, encourages us to patronize or disparage them. It's an odd strategy, but it holds our attention. By making us uncomfortable about our own less admirable attitudes, he focuses us intently on his story line. <p> In "Coincidence of the Arts," the targets are the feckless painter Sir Rodney Peel and his black doorman, aspiring novelist Pharsin Courier, who turns to him for artistic encouragement. When Peel embarks on a curious affair with a black waitress, it is sheer coincidence that she should happen to be Pharsin's wife. The consequences reflect well on neither man. In "State of England," we smirk knowingly at Big Mal, a bullshitting East Ender trying to sort out his life at his small son's sports day, but we are nevertheless compelled to find out what will become of him. Familiar stories about obsessive bad sex such as "Let Me Count the Times" have not stood the test of time, and Amis's tales of literary agents, aspiring novelists, and spoiled bestseller writers may only interest an inner coterie. Still, when he is on form, Amis's work is as deeply alluring as it is amusing. <I>--Lisa Jardine, Amazon.co.uk</I> 1597542 1998 Heavy Water: and Other Stories total:254|5:29|4:77|3:119|2:24|1:5| 254 863 330 21 3 1 false false Mon May 28 20:16:08 -0700 2007 Mon May 28 20:17:00 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Sat Nov 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Tue Nov 04 11:46:08 -0800 2008 Tue Nov 04 11:46:08 -0800 2008 Heavy Water And Other Stories is an intriguing collection of short stories written by British writer Martin Amis. The basic theme that links these stories to one another is a focus on British culture either through character or through the setting.

Of the nine short stories in Heavy Wate...more...]]> 5 0 false false Sun Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Sun Jun 01 18:30:50 -0700 2008 Tue Jun 03 17:42:55 -0700 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Nov 27 17:12:45 -0800 2008 Fri Nov 28 08:59:24 -0800 2008 3 4 0 false false Wed May 20 06:20:35 -0700 2009 Sun May 10 04:45:22 -0700 2009 Wed May 20 06:20:35 -0700 2009 3 0 false false Mon Mar 30 07:24:52 -0700 2009 Mon Mar 30 07:24:52 -0700 2009 5 0 false false Wed May 21 18:43:44 -0700 2008 Wed May 21 18:45:44 -0700 2008 more...]]> 1 0 false false Tue Mar 20 13:24:33 -0700 2007 Tue Mar 27 14:07:37 -0700 2007 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Thu Jul 05 19:30:13 -0700 2007 Thu Jul 05 19:30:13 -0700 2007 On craft, he's unimpeach...more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Mar 14 22:24:23 -0700 2007 Thu Mar 15 23:18:17 -0700 2007 5 0 false false Fri Sep 07 13:16:22 -0700 2007 Fri Sep 07 13:19:41 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Mon Nov 10 10:40:52 -0800 2008 Mon Nov 10 10:40:52 -0800 2008 5 0 false false Sat Aug 25 23:47:08 -0700 2007 Sat Aug 25 23:47:12 -0700 2007 The Janitor From Mars wherein an abusive Martian robot communicates to a representative gathering of Earthlings precisely how little they matter in the grand scheme of things. ]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Wed May 02 09:44:08 -0700 2007 Wed May 02 09:44:08 -0700 2007 3 0 false false Tue Aug 26 21:40:54 -0700 2008 Tue Aug 26 21:42:09 -0700 2008 1 0 false false Mon Mar 01 00:00:00 -0800 1999 Thu Jun 19 13:49:06 -0700 2008 Thu Jan 15 08:04:15 -0800 2009 4 0 false false Mon Jun 18 16:50:56 -0700 2007 Wed Nov 14 11:44:38 -0800 2007 4 0 false false Sun Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2006 Wed Jan 09 13:32:40 -0800 2008 Thu Jan 10 08:10:23 -0800 2008 4 0 false false Wed Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2003 Wed Oct 03 12:39:59 -0700 2007 Wed Oct 03 12:40:28 -0700 2007 4 0 false false Fri Aug 01 10:56:56 -0700 2008 Fri Aug 01 10:57:32 -0700 2008 http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=23037