The Singapore Grip

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The Singapore Grip

by J.G. Farrell, Derek Mahon (Introduction)

4.06 · rating details · 185 ratings · 42 reviews

Singapore, 1939: life on the eve of World War II just isn't what it used to be for Walter Blackett, head of British Singapore's oldest and most powerful firm. No matter how forcefully the police break one strike, the natives go on strike somewhere else. His daughter keeps entangling herself with the most unsuitable beaus, while her intended match, the son of Blackett's par...more

Paperback, 568 pages

Published November 24th 2010 by New York Review Books Classics (first published 1978)

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Joyce Lagow

Apr 20, 2010

Joyce Lagow rated it

Third in Farrell s Empire trilogy, The Singapore Grip is also the worst , a term I emphasize is relative only within the trilogy (The Siege of Krishnapur and Troubles being the first two). Farrell examined the role of the British in their colonial empire and set them up for ridicule. He succeeded brilliantly with the first two, especially with Troubles, which is a masterpiece. However, there is a boundary line in satire; if you go too far over that line, the figures stop being objects of...moreThird in Farrell s Empire trilogy, The Singapore Grip is also the worst , a term I emphasize is relative only within the trilogy (The Siege of Krishnapur and Troubles being the first two). Farrell examined the role of the British in their colonial empire and set them up for ridicule. He succeeded brilliantly with the first two, especially with Troubles, which is a masterpiece. However, there is a boundary line in satire; if you go too far over that line, the figures stop being objects of mockery and merely become one-dimensional and thus boring. That seems to be what happened with The Singapore Grip Farrell was too heavy-handed with two of his major protagonists in particular and several of the comprimario ones; as a result, there are entire sections of the book that are dull and boring, in which the reader slogs through hoping for better days. They certainly occur, but the price is a little stiff.[return][return]The setting of the book is the island of Singapore, starting in 1937, just before the outbreak of World War II. The opening sets the stage for the Farrell s attitude towards the British merchant barons in the Far East. The description of Singapore high society" (meaning the British, of course) is a fascinating southeast Asian analogue of that same society in Ireland (Troubles) and in India (Siege of Krishanpur). Walter Blackett, head of the firm of Blackett and Webb, Singapore s oldest British-owned business, is planning the company s jubilee celebration: a massive parade extolling the virtues of Blackett and Webb as the epitome of progressive business and the benefits it brings to the substantially inferior natives and other ethnic groups who labor in the rice fields, rubber plantations, warehouses, and other entities of the companies diverse business interests. Yet, at the same time, we re told of worker strikes, the horrendous living conditions of the workers, price fixing, the efforts Blackett and Webb have made to force independent rubber producers out and create an oligarchy of such producers for the British-owned business. On the horizon is the Japanese, whom no one takes seriously as a possible threat to the Malay Peninsula and Singapore itself. But nothing matters to Walter except Blackett and Webb, and to this end he is willing to use his daughter to seduce and marry, if need be, the son of the former owner, now dead, in order to get control of the son s shares in the company. Interestingly enough, the daughter is perfectly happy to do so. All part of the ethos of the British merchant class.[return][return]Walter Blackett is a caricature; throughout the book, he is depicted as being far more interested in his business enterprises and the outwitting of a major rival than in anything else, including his country. When the Japanese do invade, Walter even contemplates doing business with them, clearly treason, but such notions never cross his mind. What s good for Blackett and Webb is good for everyone else, including England, an astonishing perspective of collaboration with an enemy.[return][return]Matthew is the other major caricature, that of the guilt-ridden liberal who claims to see all the evil colonialism does yet does nothing but talk. And talk. And talk. To the point where it s no longer amusing but truly boring you want to shake him and tell him to just shut up.[return][return]We meet Major Archer again, in his 50s now, but this time, Archer is not the diffident, helpless soul he was in Troubles. In fact, during the Battle of Singapore, Archer heads one of the city s volunteer fire brigades and organizes shelter and food for the ever-increasing number of refugees.[return][return]There are other, minor characters, more or less well done. Walter s daughter Joan is too conniving to be real. There s an American officer caught by the Japanese invasion. There s the Frenchman Dupigny who was an official in French colonial Indochina before the Japanese overwhelmed that area. There are brief, interesting appearances of Malasians, ethnic Chinese who came to work in the rubber plantations, and others. Some of the minor characters are far more interesting than Walter and Matthew.[return][return]What saves this book is Farrell s description of the defense of Singapore. Air Chief Marshall Brooke-Popham, a historical figure, was commander-in-Chief of the defense of the Malay Peninsula and Singapore. Farrell, as did many after the fall of Singapore, puts the principal blame for the inadequate resistance to the Japanese attacks on Brooke-Popham. Whether true or not, it makes for fascinating reading.[return][return]Farrell shines in his description of Singapore under repeated Japanese aerial bombardment. The finest scene in the entire book may be the one where Archer s fire brigade, among others, is trying to contain the fire in a lumberyard. It s a truly harrowing scene; that whole section alone is worth reading the book.[return][return]The Singapore Grip is an uneven and even awkward book, but Farrell s prose is excellent and his treatment of the defense of Singapore superb. I only rated the book at 3 1/2 stars due to the characterizations--the caricatures--of Walter and Matthew; they really detracted from what would have otherwise been a superb book.(less)

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Steven Langdon

Dec 19, 2011

Steven Langdon rated it

· review of another edition

J. G. Farrell has written a trilogy on the eclipse of the British Empire that speaks superbly of the delusions, the pathologies and the nevertheless ever-so-human encounters across the social and cultural lines that colonialism drew. In this novel, the setting is Singapore in the pre-World War Two then wartime years of British-Japanese conflict. The complacency of a colonial elite is gradually eroded, the military dominance of the Europeans is slowly then quickly shown to be illusory, and...more

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Tony

Dec 04, 2010

Tony rated it

Shelves: fiction-mainstream

Farrell, J. G. THE SINGAPORE GRIP. (1973). *****. This was the third and last of Farrell’s trilogy of novels that dealt with the English colonial systems. The first, “Troubles,” tells of the conditions existing between England and Ireland right after WW I. The second, “The Siege of Krishnapore,” a Booker Prize-winner, is set in India in Farrell’s fictional town ruled by the troops of the East India Company; the time was 1857. This novel is set in Singapore during the start of WW II, and l...moreFarrell, J. G. THE SINGAPORE GRIP. (1973). *****. This was the third and last of Farrell’s trilogy of novels that dealt with the English colonial systems. The first, “Troubles,” tells of the conditions existing between England and Ireland right after WW I. The second, “The Siege of Krishnapore,” a Booker Prize-winner, is set in India in Farrell’s fictional town ruled by the troops of the East India Company; the time was 1857. This novel is set in Singapore during the start of WW II, and lays out how the British had taken over the land and labor of the arhipelago for the production and distribution of rubber, tin and palm oil. Although each novel is independent of the others, each deals with a specific area of English exploitation of their “colonies.” The principal character in this book is actually a firm, the firm of Blackett &Webb. Soon after the novel begins, the senior Mr. Webb dies. Mr. Blackett then has to run the company himself until he finds out what the heirs of Webb intend to do with their share of the business. He himself does not have an obvious heir for his share of the business – one which controls much of the rubber producing plantations in Malaysia. His son, Monty, is sort of looney, and prefers to go off and socialize with the other Brits. His specialty is practical joking among his group of friends. Joan, Blackett’s daughter, is the obvious choice to carry on the business. He hatches a plan to marry off Joan to Webb’s son, Matthew, who has spent most of his life in England and, lately, in Geneva, working for a committee of the League of Nations. Matthew is the epitome of the liberal peacenik. When Matthew returns to Malaysia on learning of his father’s death, he shows no interest in the business, and even less in Joan. He immediately spots the crux of the company’s success: cheap labor and cheap land. He sets out to try and reform the methods of the company in achieving their profit goals and permit the workers to have a larger share of the income stream. He is immediately rebuffed by Blackett and Joan. Suddenly, Malaysia is invaded by the Japanese, and the world of English trade and manufacture is turned on its head. When the country is ultimately captured and Singapore is made to surrender, all of the players that are left are forced to face the roles that they had played in the country’s demise. There is a sort of a love story in here, also, but it really doesn’t impact on the plot line. What is done well is the description of the Japanese invasion and the vain attempts by the local British troops – and their Indian and Malaysian forces – to stem the obvious tide of victory that the Japanese are pursuing. Of the three novels, this one is probably the best – although it was not a prize winner. It is a long read, but one which was very satisfying. Highly recommended.(less)

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Nick D

Aug 21, 2010

Nick D rated it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Farrell is undergoing a renaissance of sorts, receiving from the New York Review of Books that most sincere of all posthumous honors, re-publication. The defects (he was not bothered by the need for depth in his characters and was even less interested in noting what happened to all of them) perhaps respond to where he stood in the flow of British fiction. Farrell wrote in the sixties but he is remembered for his novels of the seventies, where they stand as a coda to the British Empire (set i...moreFarrell is undergoing a renaissance of sorts, receiving from the New York Review of Books that most sincere of all posthumous honors, re-publication. The defects (he was not bothered by the need for depth in his characters and was even less interested in noting what happened to all of them) perhaps respond to where he stood in the flow of British fiction. Farrell wrote in the sixties but he is remembered for his novels of the seventies, where they stand as a coda to the British Empire (set in the Ireland of the Troubles, India, and in a Singapore falling to the Japanese). As such, he stands at the point where the effective satire of the conservative satirists like Evelyn Waugh, Kingsley Amis and Anthony Powell gave way to the ruthless anarchy of Monty Python (I say "effective" because, although Amis and Powell both outlived Farrell, their best work was behind them by the time his best work appeared). So "The Singapore Group" shows the English colonists jockeying for the best seats among a society approaching disaster. No one is spared, not the industrialist who schemes to sell his rubber and marry his daughter in order to extend the almighty firm, not the high-strung daughter who helps him, not the dissolute son or the hanger-on of a French diplomat, not the military that makes ever more disastrous tactical decisions, not the idealist who would rather talk than act. Farrell is mindful that the Japanese succeeded in part because they promised liberation from a British colony so deluded that it thought it commanded loyalty from someone besides the Chinese (who were already at war), And -- when his comedy is not over-broad -- he is capable of reminding us that the inept generals were British, but most of the people who died resisting the Japanese were Australian, Hindustani, Gurkha or Punjabi. Perhaps the most moving sequence, and loving characterization is of a nameless elderly Chinese man who in the course of a page runs from and dies in the first Japanese bombing of the city. Some of the most sympathetic characters are the invading Japanese soldiers, but the invasion itself comes across as just as mercenary and considerably less human than the at-least comic British. Perhaps best of all, Farrell does complete chaos well, especially the chaos of a last minute escape with the Japanese at the heels but thwarted by the Empire's self-important bureaucracy. Like real chaos, everything disappears. The final destiny of only one character is revealed, and perhaps another. This is Farrell, so that is a very real "perhaps."(less)

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Caleb Guillotte

Apr 24, 2008

Caleb Guillotte rated it

The final installment in Farrell's "Empire Trilogy" is just as engaging, funny, strange and tragic. Set during the impending Japanese invasion of Singapore during WWII, Farrell highlights how the different classes perceive the events washing over them.

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Karlan

Jun 11, 2009

Karlan rated it

Shelves: adult

Farrell, author of the Booker award winning SIEGE OF KRISHNAPUR, tells the story of the Japanese invasion of the Malay peninsula and the fall of Singapore from the viewpoint of British businessmen who had thrived in Singapore. The first chapters describe the lives of the wealthy owners of a firm preparing to celebrate an anniversary with a parade to entertain the locals. The lavish dinners and flirtations among the young continue for a while as the attackers begin bombing Singapore. The sto...more

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Charles

Aug 10, 2010

Charles rated it

· review of another edition

A fitting end to the Empire trilogy, with Farrell digging deep into the consequences of economic colonialism. The devil is in the detail, but so is the richness that prevents Farrell's characters from becoming puppets or mouthpieces for the various ideologies that sustained and sought to undermine the stranglehold of western business in the imperial colonies of the east. I found much of the book moving, particularly the chapter in which Matthew is taken by the Vera to the dying house and forced ...more

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Quinn

May 27, 2009

Quinn rated it

Like From Here to Eternity, The Singapore Grip tells a story about the Second World War and about a small group of people at the same time. Like the film, you are never sure if the individual dramas are there to embellish the larger drama of the war or vice versa nor does it seems like the question is made to be answered. Like his earlier book The Siege of Krishnapur set during the Indian Rebellion of 1857, Farrell uses The Singapore Grip to lovingly trace the cracks in the marble walls of Bri...more

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Sandybanks

Sep 07, 2011

Sandybanks rated it

Shelves: 2011, long-ago-and-never-was, white-man-s-burden, world-war-ii

The Siege of Krishnapur succeeds because Farrell let his colonial characters expose their own tragicomic ridiculousness with minimal intervention. Here, in the last novel of his Empire Trilogy, he was much more heavy-handed, resulting in several main characters that are outright caricatures. Walter Blackett, the head of the eponymous British trading firm that grew fat on the pre-war Malayan rubber boom, is the Evil Capitalist-Imperialist-Racist who bumbles through his public and private lives wi...moreThe Siege of Krishnapur succeeds because Farrell let his colonial characters expose their own tragicomic ridiculousness with minimal intervention. Here, in the last novel of his Empire Trilogy, he was much more heavy-handed, resulting in several main characters that are outright caricatures. Walter Blackett, the head of the eponymous British trading firm that grew fat on the pre-war Malayan rubber boom, is the Evil Capitalist-Imperialist-Racist who bumbles through his public and private lives with all the tact and sensitivity of The Office’s Michael Scott. At one point early in the novel, Farrell made him do a Bond villain speech while giving an explanation (to an appalled British army officer) on how his firm managed to drive down the selling price of Burmese rice:

“ ’You see, the Chettyar money lenders in Burma, and to a lesser extent, here in Malaya, too, acted on the peasants like saddle-soap on leather. They softened them up for us. Of course, some of the Chetties became rivals in the milling of crops but that couldn’t be helped. Without them to get the peasants used to dealing in cash (which, of course, in practice meant tricking them into debts they would have to pay up) rather than in barter of produce the merchants would have been all in the poorhouse, including Mr. Webb. One bad crop with forward contracts to fill!’ ”

Walter even has porcine bristles on his back, which “had a tendency to rise when he was angry and sometimes, even, in moments of conjugal intimacy.”

The other main character, Matthew Webb, the son of Blackett’s partner who comes to Malaya to inherit his father’s interest in the firm, is another caricature. Fat, bespectacled, a naïve idealist fresh from a League of Nations job in Geneva, he is the Pierre Bezukhov of the novel, full of lofty ethical notions entirely at odds with Blackett and Webb’s business practices (the book’s polemics on colonial economic policies are conducted largely through these two characters). Yet unlike Tolstoy’s lovable, redeemable dork, he is little more than an annoyingly passive windbag and his character’s naïve idealism is never tested in any meaningful way. He is so inconsequential that Farrell’s attempt in embroiling him in a love triangle reminiscent of the one in War and Peace falls flat on its face. The Prince Andrei character, the American officer Ehrendorf, seemed to be promising, but is then summarily dispatched without much ado once his usefulness as romantic foil is used up. The Helene Kuragin proxy, Walter’s pretty daughter Joan, is just as vacuously farcical and unbelievable as her father. The weakness of the central characters makes long stretches of this 700 plus pages novel (another Tolstoyan emulation?) quite dull indeed. Which is a pity, since Farrell had obviously done his homework and was perfectly capable of conjuring a plausible, grittily exotic version of pre-war Singapore replete with amusing, well-drawn colonial supporting characters.

“There, too, when you staggered outside into the sweltering night, you would have been able to inhale that incomparable smell of incense, of warm skin, of meat cooking in coconut oil, of money and frangipani, and hair-oil and lust and sandalwood and heaven knows what, a perfume like the breath of life itself.”
(less)

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Jenny

Aug 21, 2011

Jenny rated it

Recommended to Jenny by: John Keogan

This book was the last of Farrell's trilogy, and what a great read. He's examining colonialism in the British colonies, and this one, no surprise, deals with Singapore. This is a great way to learn about the Japanese invasion; with his typical style, in his military passages, Farrell intersperses the strategizing with the menu details. One of the characters at the front sits "enjoying toast and marmalade and a welcome cup of hot coffee," later reflecting on "what he saw on the ...more

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Erma Odrach

Feb 01, 2010

Erma Odrach rated it

Singapore was formed as a trading town for the British Empire, and in 1942 when it fell to the Japanese, the colonial inhabitants didn't know what hit them. Even as the Japanese were making their way down The Malay Peninsula, Walter Blackett, a prosperous merchant, was completely oblivious and continued with his plans of a Jubilee celebration. The book is good at painting a vivid picture of colonial greed and arrogance. It is tragic and at times amusing (but in a wry way), and very well researc...more

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James Murphy

Nov 01, 2010

James Murphy rated it

The Singapore Grip is the 3d volume of Farrell's Empire Trilogy. Following the gradual destruction of Krishnapur during the 1st volume's depiction of the Sepoy Mutiny and the collapse of an Irish manor house in Troubles, this 3d volume is about the 1941 Japanese invasion of Malaysia and the disintegration of Singapore and British society there. The end of empire, which seems to be Farrell's big theme. The Singapore Grip is my favorite of the 3 novels. I believe it to be the most stylized nov...moreThe Singapore Grip is the 3d volume of Farrell's Empire Trilogy. Following the gradual destruction of Krishnapur during the 1st volume's depiction of the Sepoy Mutiny and the collapse of an Irish manor house in Troubles, this 3d volume is about the 1941 Japanese invasion of Malaysia and the disintegration of Singapore and British society there. The end of empire, which seems to be Farrell's big theme. The Singapore Grip is my favorite of the 3 novels. I believe it to be the most stylized novel of the trilogy and the one with the most developed themes. There's a richness and maturity in storytelling I'd not suspected from reading the first 2 volumes. Obviously major poles of opposition are those of the British of the colony and the invading Japanese and the military campaign waged as the British are overwhelmed. Another is the continuing dialogue between liberalism/humanitarianism on one hand and the world trade/big business of empire, in Singapore best represented by the huge rubber conglomerates, on the other. Walter Blackett, head of a rubber-producing firm, represents the latter, a symbol of overreaching, overarching empire more concerned with salvaging commerce and trade. In the end he's seen as a kind of Satan and the fires raging through Singapore under attack as a vision of hell. The crumbling of empire is also represented by the Japanese heavy bombing of the city which erodes just as steadily as do the British units forced to retreat south to one position after another until they're backed up against the city and the sea. The defeat isn't just physical, material, though. It's also moral, brought about by loss of energy and despair, a thought carried into criticisms of the ineffectiveness of the League of Nations and its attempts to maintain peace when faced with unreasonable violence. Farrell has a lot to say about ideas like that and about history, race, and empire, and it's grim. But he dilutes the grimness with the humor always embedded in his fiction. He's good with the spirit of the times, too. The Singapore Grip seems to capture the cultural character very well, the popular music, the fascination with movies, the attributes of 1940's speech and slang. All of it adds to the rich tapestry the novel is. I wonder where Farrell's fiction would've gone next. He died young the year after The Singapore Grip was published. Because historians note 2 more events significant to the shrinkage of the empire following the war--the loss of Iran and Suez in the 50s, I wonder if he would've considered another volume, making a tetralogy. It would have needed to be a dandy novel to be better than The Singapore Grip.(less)

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Stephanie

May 22, 2009

Stephanie rated it

A grand disappointment since his "Seige of Krishnapur" is such a gem. The first and last 100 pages give hints of the grandeur that's in "Krishnapur" but Farrell includes long paragraphs (and sometime chapters) on military, political and economic history. This book follows the Japanese bombing (and subsequent takeover) of Singapore island in 1939; of course, with Farrell as the author, it's part farce, part tragedy. The main plot revolves around Matthew, the idealistic son of ...more

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Enrique

Jun 07, 2008

Enrique rated it

Empecé a leer The Singapore Grip, durante mi viaje a aquellas tierras, era mi segundo viaje a Singapore y para quien conoce esta ciudad le parecerá muy interesante ver su historia como colonia Inglesia cuya riqueza provenia basicamente de los plantíos de Hule en Malaya y su excelente posición geográfica que la ha hecho uno de los puertos más importantes del mundo. La historia empieza en el Singapore antes de la invasión japonesa durante la segunda guerra mundial. Narra la historia de la familia ...more

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Diane

Jan 17, 2010

Diane rated it

Shelves: world-war-ii, history, fiction, southeast-asia

The Singapore Grip is one of a trio of novels (The Empire Trilogy) by JG Farrell that document the end of British Colonialism. I read it as part of my recent interest in pre-WW II novels set in Asia. Singapore Grip tells the story by focusing on the Blacketts, who own a commercial firm in Singapore during the years just before and during WW II. This is a big novel - over 500 pages and includes pictures ranging from nightlife of Singapore, to the exploitation of Chinese and Indians, to the ennui...more

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ResoluteReader

Nov 01, 2011

ResoluteReader rated it

A decent, if slightly over-long finale to the brilliant Empire Trilogy. Farrell looks at the reality of the rubber barons in the long run up to the Japanese attack on Singapore. Few nice establishment characters mix, with vulnerable and exploited natives while the British Empire continues to decline.

If you enjoyed Troubles and Siege of Krishnapaur, then you'll like this. But read them first.

Full review

http://resolutereader.blogspot.com/2011/...

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Joe

Sep 11, 2009

Joe rated it

Wonderful novel. The fall of Singapore! The author conducted meticulous research into the Japanese military campaign, which reads as gripping miltary history. He explains in layman's terms, the cut-throat economic approach we know as colonialism - no sentimentality here. One of the best characters is a White Russian prostitute...... We are given nine or ten possible definitions of just what exactly the Singapore Grip may be... as to which is true, you decide :-)

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Peter

Sep 01, 2011

Peter rated it

Shelves: read-in-2011

The reading of J.G. Farrell's trilogy: "Troubles," "Siege at Krishnapur" and "The Singapore Grip" has been one the greatest experiences of my nearly 58 years of bookworm life. Farrell's understanding of people and circumstances and his truly Dickensian story telling skills (I've not read a writer who lifts the veil on scenes in a way as reminiscent of Dickens and Farrell) are breathtaking.

I will miss the people I met in these books very much.

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Grace

Aug 08, 2010

Grace rated it

· review of another edition

Set in second world war Singapore, this entertaining novel satirises the respectability of business and the civilising influence of empire, repeatedly revealing neither to have any other purpose or result than self-interest. No great surprise you might think, but over thirty years after the book's publication, the positions attacked here are still frequently expounded in papers like the Daily Mail. Not the greatest novel but I enjoyed it, particularly the second half. First half could have done...more

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Roger Neilson

Aug 30, 2011

Roger Neilson rated it

Just begun but this feels very good. Set just before the fall of Singapore in 1942. Reeks of period detail and should be a great read.

Up to the night before Pearl Harbour. This is so so full of detail and the feel of the end of an age..... lots of great stuff in here about the very degenerate colonial and capitalist controls - being brought up on us as being the good guys in the war against Japan its certainly painting a much more ambivalent view. Great to se the Major back in 'action...more

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Ari Katz

Aug 14, 2011

Ari Katz rated it

Meh. I picked this book because I wanted something to read about historical Singapore before my trip there. Started out reading a lot like Graham Greene, whom I love, but then sort of degenerated into a mess of inconsistent characters, uncertain narrative, and incomplete storylines. Then it just kind of ends. It does give a decent picture of the final days of British colonial extravagance before the Japanese invasion in WWII, but the non-European characters are all paper-thin stereotypes. All th...more

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Mike

Oct 12, 2009

Mike rated it

Recommends it for: Anyone

A place and people that I have more personal knowledge of than his Booker Prize-winning, "The Siege of Krishnapur". I liked this as much as the other. I'm not sure if others will, but it's strong, well-written fiction with firm historical underpinnings.

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Elaine

Jul 10, 2010

Elaine rated it

Shelves: 2010

My least favorite of the trilogy by far. Too much (boring) political philosophy being passed off (barely) as dialogue, and a little too much military strategy for my taste. Still, a gripping setting and the Farrell touches of humor aren't lacking.

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Ian

Jul 25, 2011

Ian rated it

Shelves: colonial

Found it a more well developed and mature novel compared to the critically acclaimed Siege of Krishnapur, perhaps since the geographical setting is much closer to heart. A better literary rendition of pre-war Singapore will be tough to come by. A masterpiece of historical fiction.

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Douglas Dalrymple

Feb 08, 2012

Douglas Dalrymple rated it

After the excellent Troubles and very good Siege of Krishnapur, this was a rambling disappointment, flat, in need of a serious edit.

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Bre Droptiny

Jan 26, 2008

Bre Droptiny rated it

Recommends it for: people interested in history, war strategy, Asia or British colonies

This is a fascinating story about a family living in Singapore just before, during and after the second world war. Although the family is fictitious the events in the book surrounding the war in Singapore are based on fact. Singapore's fall to the Japanese in the second world war is one of the biggest military defeats in British history... and entirely baffling!!
Although the story was tedious in parts it was mostly fun to read and often humorous. The author offers up some interesting i...more

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Amy

Feb 06, 2011

Amy rated it

Why, oh why, couldn't you have tightened this up, J.G. Farrell? I loved the other two books in this trilogy, but this one seemed like a feverish dream that just wouldn't end. It was so entertaining in spots, and then the endless musings of Matthew made me want to scream. I reluctantly gave up, 3/4 of the way through.

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Gracegabe

Aug 07, 2010

Gracegabe rated it

ironic witty wicked novel about british colonialism ...and how spoiled people face up to adversity

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Elizabeth

Mar 29, 2011

Elizabeth rated it

Recommended to Elizabeth by: My dad

Really bummed that I can't visit this Singapore. Anyway, on to The Siege of Krishnapur.

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Carol

Mar 01, 2011

Carol marked it as to-read

Penelope Lively mentions this book in Oleander, Jacaranda.

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About J.G. Farrell

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James Gordon Farrell (25 January 1935 – 11 August 1979), known as J.G. Farrell, was a Liverpool-born novelist of Irish descent. Farrell gained prominence for his historical fiction, most notably his Empire Trilogy (Troubles, The Siege of Krishnapur and The Singapore Grip), dealing with the political and human consequences of British colonial rule. The Siege of Krishnapur won the 1973 Booker Prize....more

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The Empire Trilogy: The Siege of Krishnapur, Troubles, and The Singapore Grip

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ESB Library

ESB Library

50 members

last activity Jan 20, 2012 08:51am

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SAT Meetup Book Club

SAT Meetup Book Club

8 members

last activity Feb 08, 2012 05:29pm

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