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Customer Reviews (3)

Toys with Attitude
Plenty of humor. I enjoyed the idea of a teddy bear who goes to the pub and has a stash of toy weapons. Book gives some piercing insights into the "real" world and meat-head (human) behaviour. Beware the chickens !!

Backcover: Somewhere over the rainbow and just off the Yellow Brick Road stands Toy City, formerly known as Toy Town. And things are not going well for the city's inhabitants. There have been outbreaks of STC--Spontaneous Toy Combustion--and there are strange signs and portents in the Heavens. Preachers of Toy City's many religions are predicting that the End Times are approaching and that a Toy City Apocalypse will soon come to pass. But can this possibly be true, or is there a simple explanation--an alien invasion, for instance? With the body count rising and the forces of law and order baffled, it is the time for a hero to step forward and attempt to save the day. Well, two heroes, actually: Eddie Bear, Toy City Private Eye, and his loyal sidekick, Jack. Our courageous twosome are about to face their biggest challenge yet--to save not only toykind, but the world of mankind, too.

Sequel toThe Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse (Gollancz)

Rankin's books are as strange as.
The cover copy says this is the "longed-for sequel to The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse." That's a bit of publisher's hyperbole, but after four years, Rankin has indeed produced a sequel. Eddie Bear, Toytown PI (he used to be the bear of the late Bill Winkie), has been removed from the position of Mayor by the kindly, white-haired old toymaker who put him in that job at the end of the first book. Eddie, it appears, is a reformer and his efforts didn't go over too well. So he gets back together with Jack, his human partner (or, possibly, his "comedy sidekick"), who has been washing dishes in a diner (part of Nadine Sprat's franchise operation). At this point, you can see where Rankin's peculiarly English sense of humor is going, if you didn't already know. Anyway, the two get caught up in the investigation of the simultaneous murder of every cymbal-playing wind-up monkey in Toytown, followed by the abduction by chicken-aliens of a club band and the opera's orchestra, followed by an incursion into the meat-head world Beyond the Second Big O. Frankly, Rankin's idiosyncratic narrative style is more fun than the plot itself. (He not infrequently tries too hard.) Myself, I still prefer Terry Pratchett, but this isn't bad.

Great
If you liked Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalypse then you'll love the sequel, but make sure you read Hollow Chocolate Bunnies Of The Apocalypse first or you wont know what the hell is going on! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (53)

Great packaging of shoddy book
The key thing that I have taken away from reading this book is that Titles cannot be trusted.Certainly the title of this book is brilliant; I even love the little chocolate bunnies on the cover, glaring at me as they plot.The concept presented on the back of the book is intriguing and will force those of you with unusual senses of humor to consider the purchase.This is the point that you need to stop yourself, because for all of the pretty packaging, this book does not deliver.I am a huge fan of Pratchett, Gaimen and Adams... Rankin does not belong anywhere near their ranks.

The premise of the story is simple, a young naïve boy travels to "The City" to find his fortune.What he finds is that he is now in "Toy City" and teamed up with a raggedy bear trying to solve a string of homicides.Seems interesting enough... the problem is that where this book should have been brilliant, it is not even mediocre.The dialogue is beyond irritating, pages and pages of dialogue where no one actually says anything.It's like listening to two pre-teens having a conversation... all of the key nouns are left out, the point is left out, and you have pages and pages of them babbling about things that don't have any meaning.The characters are flat, which I am sure many will argue "But they are toys, they shouldn't have huge personalities" What I am saying is that I shouldn't be able to interchange all of the characters names and get the same effect.Everyone talks the same, reacts the same, functions the same, they are all interchangeable.

Now they bill this book as having sex, violence and debauchery.Hmmm... okay they visit a brothel, and we're told that sex did happen... as far as violence, we get to see the aftermath sometimes, otherwise our main characters are just told by another bland character "such and such was killed" and that's the end of it.Debauchery, well we're told they drink a lot, but then when they are supposedly drunk, they proceed to act exactly the same as they did before other than we have to read a paragraph or nine about how the floor looked when they woke up.

The writing style may seem "cutesy" at first... as if you are being told this story by a 10 year old.Well let me enlighten all of you who don't have the pleasure of a 10 year old at home... they suck at telling stories.They go on and on and on and never actually get anywhere.The good thing is that you can tell your 10 year old "Okay get to the point" but you can't do that with a book.You have page after page of description about the moon or the floor, or a house... but have no idea what most of the characters actually look like.Was Eddie a fuzzy teddy bear or a sleek velveteen bear?Who knows?What kind of toy was TinTo actually supposed to have been?Was Humpty Dumpty actually an egg? Or a real person?At some points in the story they imply he was an egg, and then in others he was a regular human.

Then we get to the end... I won't spoil it other than to say... huh?Where did that come from and why?

I honestly wouldn't recommend this book to anyone I thought was of sound mind or menial intelligence.It's no page turner.1 out of 5 stars.

Another Rankin 0riginal
I wished I'd known this was abridged before I purchased, but otherwise it was excellent.It's not quite Fandom of the OperatorThe Fandom of the Operator (my personal Rankin favorite), but still a very enoyable and engaging tale.I especially enjoyed the interview with R.R. on the last disk.It's as funny as....

As great as.
Imagine Lewis Carroll and Theodore Dreiser - Dr. Seuss - getting together to write an adult children's book; only to pass it on to their editor - Stephen King - for some... tweaking. The end result would probably resemble this fine tale told for the benefit of the inner child of older wares.

This book was a gift and a revelation; fresh, witty, unpredictable. The wordplay - actually more like swordplay in the hands of dueling-drunkard aficionados - is simply brilliant; but not necessarily simple. If you're used to reading a lot of the tired, illiterate crap that passes for modern literature, or just plain holier than thou, you may want to pass. But don't be put-off by the suggestion that this work is meant for the so-called "intelligentsia"- those "smarter than thou."

Teddy bears and sex; God and Jack-in-the-box; dolly prostitutes and serial killers; profane and profound; and over-all okie dokie for 14 year-olds and up; especially the "ups!"

I primarily read the classics, and a bit of screenplay work by certain writers. I have a modest library of hardbacks; and I will definitely be adding this work by Rankin to the classic collection. With apologies for being redundant, this book is as great as.

Why all this comparison to Fforde?
I absolutely LOVE jasper Fforde and Robert Rankin. However, they are two different writers with their own unique writing styles. Rankin is definately more "British" in his humour, and some people just don't get that type of humor. Be honest, did you laugh at EVERY Monty Python skit you ever saw? No, because you probably didn't get it. I myself never understood what was supposed to be funny about the Ministry of Silly Walks.

I read about 8 Rankin novels before and "HCBOTA" is my favorite thus far, but I doubt if I got all the humorous references. There are many repeated elements in Raakin's novels, and the repetition is what makes them funny. If you have a pre-conceived notion as to what a story or a writer is like (usually due to the Publishers) then suspend you notions along with your disbelief, and enjoy the ride; in this case a clockwork motorcar. It, indeed, "is as good as"!

Great Book!!!
Ths is an "outside the box" hilarious book. Combined with the witty humor, it is a must read for anybody. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (6)

It's Hard To Believe
It's hard to believe that Robert Rankin's books are so difficult to obtain on these shores: for my money, Rankin is, hands down, one of the funniest, most visionary authors writing in any genre. His style is loose and playfuland, on the onset, seemingly completely at odds with the purpose ofconstructing a coherent narrative. Laugh-out-loud moments abound however,drawing the slack-jwed reader deep into a web of outrageous characters andeven more outrageous situations. An absolutely stunning achievement! I wishI could have amnesia so I could read this book again for the first time!

An excellent Book, with a roller-coaster twist in its tail
I fell in love with this book.Mr Rankins inventive and at times, ingenious writing had me enthralled. I just loved the cruelty and revenge factors of this book... and its anti- world supremacy outlook.Just wait for the celebrity summoning chapters, in Roberts own bar on the necronet. Fabulous

If your favourite drink is Death by Cider you'll love this
This is one of Rankin's best books and is best read after after most of his earlier works (as there are several references).

As usual, Rankin provides a straight forward mix of thought provoking hi-tech concepts, oldfashioned suspense, yuk and hilarity.

Easy to read with a title that'sbrilliant to show off on the train (only kidding) this book is a greatexample of why Rankin far outstrips Pratchett for action and humour.

Thebook leaves you wanting more of the same and I think that's a compliment!

More genius
This book is simply genius. (full stop - end of argument)

Do do that Voodoo that you do so well...
Rankin once again has a weirdly catchy title to fit an even weirder book.

For a taste of what technology can do in the wrong hands that is frighteningly feasible...

And a further helping of sprouts (one calledBarry in particular)...

He's a clever chap, Rankin. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

I really wish I could read this wonderful sounding book!
I have not read this book. Why? Although I ordered it in NOVEMBER 2005, I have yet to receive it! I have written many letters to no avail. However, I read another review for a product sold by Amazon that the purchaser had some problem with, and their problem got resolved when they wrote a bad review. That's all I'm trying to do here, really; simply get my problem resolved.

Standard Rankin
Not the best Rankin novel - Sprouts fails to inject enough humour into theproceedings to carry the bog standard plot. Rankin regulars (like myself)will be disappointed.

Holy smokes, this is fine!
Well, it isn't the first Rankin I've read- in fact, I've gone throught them all.But this is one of the best. Coming from Ealing, near Brentford, where the books are set, I must admit I feel a certain affinity with MrRankin, but I am damned glad I do.He is incredibly funny, and get'sfunnier with each book.Sprouts...deals with Brentford's hosting the nextOlympic Games, which will be held in a giant invisible floating stadium. Hmmmm.Anyway, it's a great laugh, as much for regulars as newbies.Trustme - you will enjoy it.You have my word.No, really. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

Very good
All the old characters come back for a good one.Read the early books first, but don't miss this one.

Brentford United!
I only have one gripe with this book! The Campbell's a good guy!?! I'm a MacDonald! Surely this must have been a typo by Mr Rankin?

Aside from that, tis good, fun filled frivolity, copious in-jokes, straw hatted ladies, deamons threatening the Large drinking residents of Brentford with only O'Mally n Pooley to save them, with a little help from an aged Professor, H G Wells, the wisdom of Rune,and not to mention a sprout named Barry.. you get the idea.

Cthulhu has a cameo role too, which pleased me, as last i heard he'd taken to hiding in phoneboxes and dialing up people at odd hours of the day! Nothing like a bit of taking over the world to get you back on track!

All in all, tis a good read indeed, and well worth adding to your Rankin collection. If your new to Rankin, imagine Tom Sharpe with Ben Elton, then think of the combined creature being very drunk! Thats the spirit! You know theres wit, satire, politics, and crudity, it may give you a bad head, and perhaps mother would not approve... but, you know you want it anyway!

Enjoy!

Generally funny
Knees Up Mother Earth concerns the forces of darkness and their attempts to gain control of Brentford football (soccer) ground, so they can bring about Apocalypse. Only two professional layabouts can save the world, by getting Brentford to win the FA cup. This is near-impossible, but the forces of darkness aren't about to let it happen. Then things get complicated, when all sorts of strangeness appears...
Rankin likes in-jokes, wordplay, and general silliness, but it's not comedy, more sly humour. This isn't as good as some of his books, but it's not bad. It's a good break from more serious reading.
This is the seventh in the Brentford trilogy and the second in the Witches of Chiswick of Trilogy, and though it's not necessary to have read either (you'll pick it up quickly enough) I recommend having read the Witches of Chiswick first. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (9)

i absolutely luvd this book
this was the first rankin book i purchased,it was recomended to me because i read a lot of Moore's stuff.well i have to say this book was unbelievably funny.Barely a page went by that i did not find myself chuckling outloud.I found the very lyrical form of writing to be an extremely fast read. the only problem with the book was that i finished it too fast.rest assured i will read more Rankin books in the months to come.

Off the wall
Hilarious.Absolutely mad.Check out his other books and read the reviews on amazon.co.uk (he's an English writer).
Brentford does exist, it is near Heathrow airport on the way into London.Couldn't find the pub though.

I am not into science fiction, or time travelling, but I am into inspired, slightly insane, totally off the wall, writing.There's none better than Robert Rankin.

Recommended.

Well? Amazon, what are you thinking?
I ordered this in early September. It's now October 8 and I haven't yet received it, but they want me to review it?

Be serious, guys.

There's no time like the present
And a lot of time travelers put in a lot of - well, time to make it this way, so don't go messing it up.

Rankin gives us a seriously skewed view of a world a lot like ours. All of commerce, all of industry, and a fair bit of the government have been taken over by one megacorp, but the placid little town of Brentford putters along the way is has for the last few hundred years. And a good thing, too. For one thing, there's that new band with the feel-good music, the kind that really leaves you feeling good. There's Jim Pooley whose name goes down in history as the biggest cockup ever, and getting killed early on doesn't seem to get in his way. There's a stove-top genetic experiment in horse breeding, with success of peculiar sorts. There's the fortune teller who doesn't read your palm but your - well, women don't seem to have very much ahead of them. And there's the end of the world, not that anyone seems to care very much. It all comes together in a readable, entertaining story that all ends just about where it began, only not quite.

This seems to be one interlude midway through a series of books centered on Brentford, but a newcomer will pick up the who's who and what's what (even the when's when) quickly enough. It lacks Terry Pratchett's level of fantasy and huge personalities, and lacks Tom Holt's sense of frenzy. Still it's a good read, and I'll be back to Brentford again.

Rankin is just starting to catch on in the US, but deserves a lot more attention. He puts together an amusing story. If nothing else, it should hold you until Pratchett or Holt come out with their next.

//wiredweird

A pint of large at the Flying Swan
This was the first Rankin novel I tried, and I'm now chewing my way through the rest of them. The humour is about as zany as it gets, and there are some real laugh-out-loud moments. The premise of many of his novels is the same, and very british: Jim Pooley and John Omally live in Brentford and lack gainful employment. Their picaresque adventures could be interpreted as products of their overactive imaginations. In various novels they come face to face with the antipope, aliens from Ceres, time travel, and a host of other delightful oddities, always helped by their friend the Professor. Don't expect anything deep, but expect a riot of imaginative humour. Maybe I should just read you the first few sentences of this novel.

`She does what?' John Omally looked up from his pint and down at Small Dave.

`Reads your knob,' said the wee man. `It's a bit like Palmistry, where they read the lines on your hand. Except this is called Penistry and they can tell your fortune by looking at your knob.'

It was spring and it was Tuesday. It was lunchtime. They were in the Flying Swan.

`I don't believe it,' said John. `Someone's been winding you up, Dave.'

`They have not. I overheard two policemen talking about it while I was locked up in a suitcase.'

`Excuse me, Dave,' said Soap Distant, newly returned from a journey to the centre of the Earth. `But why were you locked in a suitcase?'

`There was some unpleasantness. I don't wish to discuss it.' ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (7)

I'd review if I could read it!!!
Order placed October 10, 2005.Two missed estimated time of delivery, and two complaints later -- still not in my possession.

Don't order this book here,You will never receive it.Best of luck!

The Antipope
Unfair judgement of this item!! After a month of waiting Amazon can't ship it or the Book of Ultimate Truth. US Rankin fans beware, this is not necessarily a proper outlet for order.

pooley and omally- England's heroes.
I've been reading Robert Rankin for three years, and I have to say, all the books in the Brentford triangle series are classics! The sheer silliness of his stories just have you in stiches for hours, The Antipoope is a favorite for one reason only. It's a first! It starts everything off, Neville the part-time bar man, the professor, the tramp... This book starts it all and I assure you, you'll never put the book down!

Persistently amusing.
This is one of my favorite books. It's the first of the Brentford series. I find the whole series to be comfortable, likable and highly amusing. It helps to have a taste for the surreal. I found the characters to be very likable. They have the carefree attitudes of the characters from Steinbeck's Tortilla Flat or Cannery Row, but they are intelligent and educated. They are not the type one would expect to be called upon to save the world. Essentially Brentford is the world. Should any character temporarily wander out of Brentford, Brentford would still be the reference point. The pub is the core essence of this world. Nothing is really serious unless if effects the pub. To this little world comes every silly notion that ever landed on the front page of the most bizarre tabloids. The Antipope is the place to start. It's one of the best, and will introduce you to the Brentford perspective. I found after reading a few pages, I wanted to take a break and wait for the smile on my face to ease up a little before I dared to proceed.

Ode to the drinking man
If you are unacquainted with Rankin's bizarre books, this may well be agood start. It's not his best book, but it's his first. Part of the funreading Rankin is in the repetitions: Rankin quotes himself constantly, soyou won't miss any of that when you start off from here.

"TheAntipope" is the first novel in the Brentford series, in which anordinary London suburb is the scene of grotesque battles between Good andEvil. It's up to Jim Pooley and John Omally, two bums with an insatiableappetite for beer, to save the world, with the help of a mysteriousprofessor and some other highly improbable characters. In this book, theadversary is an evil tramp posessed with formidable powers, who is about totake control of the world as the Pope of some dark new Church.

Twothings distinguish Robert Rankin from other comic SF/Fantasy writers likeDouglas Adams and Terry Pratchett: his profound knowledge of the occult,and the sheer outlandishness and pomp of his stories. Rankin calls himselfa tall-tale teller and his books far-fetched fiction. Some scenes in thisparticular book, like the disastrous cowboy night, and the vain attempts toopen a mysterious parcel, just project themselves before your eyes, as ifyou were watching a movie. And make you laugh aloud. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Crazy as a holy trout
Weird, wacky, wild. Crazy,cracking, cold. Barmy, bonkers, batty. Strange, stupid, silly.

Sorely Maligned
This is a rare foray into pure fantasy for Rankin, and this genre switch,along with it not being part of a series - something Rankin had hithertopretty much stuck to - threw quite a few of his readers, and as such thisbook has become possibly the most underrated of his works. Having recentlyre-read it, i found "The Garden..." to be absolutely,fantastically insane, and I think Rankin should, once again, be applaudedfor having the guts to just let his imagination flow onto the page, anddamn the conventions of "sanity." Max Carrion, Imagineer, is oneof Rankin's best characters, and people should give this book more of achance. ... Read more

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2 Books in oneThe Hollow Chocolate Bunnies from 2002The Toyminator from 2006 ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (8)

The Book of Ultimate Truths (Mass Market Paperback)
Unfair judgement of this item!!After a month of waiting Amazon can't ship it or the Antipope.US Rankin fans beware, this is not necessarily a proper outlet for order.

This book defines madness...
First of all, I don't understand why this guy isn't that popular (at least in the USA)! His sense of humour is unlike anything you would have ever read in your life. Laced with witty humour, brilliant use of words and insane ideas, his plots keep getting better and better with successive novels. However, this one remains a classic to the very end. Its about Hugo Rune and all his crazy theories about life (well, at least the life of a screw!). I sometimes wonder how this guy's mind works...I mean, first of all, his plot is incredibly complicated, on top of that, its situational comedy to the very best (forget those stupid sitcoms after reading this...at least I have)
Read this one and expand your mind! And the ending of this book is...well, MINDBLOWING!

Hugo Rune... an extraordiary man
I read this book once and laughed out loud.I read this book twice and had a giggly fit.I lent it to my Grandma and she didn't give it back.

Robert Rankin is a master wordsman and his books never fail to deliver.The Book of Ultimate Truths is mentioned in other books of his, and Hugo Rune is in every book.This is truly wonderful - the extracts from TBOUT are really clever and makes me wish that I'd realised that first.An extremely funny book (in case you hadn't gotten the message by now) that EVERYONE should read.

The secret life of the small screw
This is Robert Rankin's eighth novel, the first of a new series. It introduces some endearing characters: the wild-haired seventeen-year-old Cornelius Murphy, and his dwarf-like companion Tuppe.

A typical Rankin plot: Cornelius and Tuppe are on an epic quest to retrieve the suppressed chapters of The Book of Ultimate Truths, and to keep them out of evil hands. Hugo Rune, the author of the book in the book, appeared in earlier Rankin novels, but now his outlandish ideas get the full attention they deserve: about the secret life of Gandhi and H.G. Wells, about the strange behavior of biros and small scews, stories that make you laugh aloud.

This was the first book I read from Robert Rankin, and at times I wondered if this guy needed to see a doctor. I read it again recently, after having read all his other books, and I found out that I had missed a lot of jokes during the first reading. The more you read these books, the better they get.

Hilariously wierd
References to Douglas Adams aside (no, it's nothing like the Hitchhiker's Guide), this book is absolutely hilarious. It's one of the few books I've ever read that's been able to make me laugh out loud so often. Rankin'sbizarre and somewhat halucinatory style is guaranteed to catch you offguard. The endorsements on the back include Terry Pratchett saying thatRankin is one of the few authors that can consistently make him laugh. Whatbetter reason do you need? ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (3)

I love hearing Rankin read his stories
Robert Rankin has become one of my favorite authors, and I rank this as one of his best.Even better than reading Rankin, in my opinion, is hearing Rankin himself.His characterizations really bring the story to life.I still think Fandom The Fandom of the Operator is his best work ever, but I haven't read all his works.Anyway, if you're a fan of audio books and strange science fiction, you should really enjoy Rankin's audio works.

confusing but great fun
I checked out Nostradamus Ate my Hamster from the library based just on its bizarre title and was not at all disappointed.This very unusual story was hilarious, at times disturbing, and occasionally offensive, but almost entirely enjoyable.A warning to the reader: be prepared to abandon all rationality and to suspend disbelief, because this is a book that breaks all the rules.If you enjoy the work of Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy) and Monty Python's Flying Circus, this sci-fi comedy/fantasy is highly recommended.

review numero uno
I found it absolutely hilarious, all the way through. If you like Robert Rankin, you'll like this. Even though it is extremely cunning and funny it still doesn't beat the armageddon trilogy! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (1)

Excessively funny
Robert Rankin's style of surreal humour makes this and his other books possibly the funniest around. ... Read more

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Cornelius Murphy and his tiny companion Tuppe, the stuff of epics and so forth, have a plan: enter the Forbidden Zones, rescue Hugo Rune (mage, inventor, close personal friend of Einstein, author of The Book of Ultimate Truths and father to Cornelius) and find some of the boundless wealth reputed to be stored there.

The freed Hugo Rune now reveals his own agenda. He must overthrow the hideous powers within the Forbidden Zones. These are fairies no less, and their evil king is someone even more legendary than Elvis Presley himself!

In a scheme that involves kidnapping the Queen while she addresses the world before a concert performance by Gandhi's Hairdryer (the world's greatest rock hand), Rune and his gang of followers (Including Polly Gotting, former assistant to master detective Inspectre Sherringford Hovis) ricochet from one potential disaster to another. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (4)

Classic Rankin
This book contains everything which is to be expected. There is a humour not found in any other writer, which floats through the story like a log on a fast flowing stream. The lead charactors are obviously mad, the philosophies of Hugo Rune strangely persuasive, and there's an obnoxious Campbell! It's a sardonic sort of wit, but make no mistake, you will relate to the humour. If this is the first book you read by Rankin, you'll buy more.

Dissappointment
The trouble with this book and the others outside Rankins series about Brentford and Barry the travelling time sprout is you know that what you are reading ain't half as good. Rankin is undoubtedly an extremely funnyscience fiction writer but his(or his publishers?) policy of bringing outwhat seems like a book every week means you are getting less genius perpage than is tolerable. Slow down, Robert and refine your exquisitestories.Forget this book, readers, and head for Brentford country.

A madcap adventure of greed, revenge and big hair
robert Rankin is a great writer and this is one of his best books. Very funny silly and enjoyable. a word of caution though he has writtern a lot of books so prepare for a compulsive addiction

Another great story from a very under-rated writer
This book is the sequel to the "Book of Ultimate Truths". Robert is one of the great English story tellers.His brentford trilogy is a not to be missed set of books (very hard to find in North America, by the way!) The story involves two young men and their search for the great Hugo Rune (featured in the previous book.) It's got all the things fans of such authors as Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett are so good at.Creating a memorable group of charactors who you could believe to live in your own town. try this one out.It helps if you've read the first book, but this stands alone quite nicely! ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (2)

Good laughs
It was my first encounter with Rankin and I absolutely loved this book. Funny, enjoyable, genial. The "sniffing curry powder" line was hilarious!

He's still the best!
I think this book is one of Rankin's best.Filled with the usual running gags throughout and characters which have surprising realistic personalities which are reminiscent of the next door neigbour who you intensely dislike!I especially liked the part about the silent Dynamite, can you guess what it's called?You'll have to read the book to find out!Who else but Robert Rankin could think up a storyline about God and his wife and three kids?It's fantastic and I would recommend it to experienced Rankin readers or to newcomers. ... Read more

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Customer Reviews (16)

this guy is brilliant
I love love love Robert Rankin. This was one of my favorites. Read anything of his you can get your hands on. He is very hard to find in the states.

Periodically clever, consistently amusing- just don't expect it to make a lot of sense
At one point in The Witches of Chiswick our protagonist (one of numerous William Starlings in the novel) says "If this were a book or a movie, the critics would tear it to pieces, saying the hero was two dimensional and the entire sorry business unconvincing and totally plot-led."

The author makes a number of references like this (characters refer to things that `happened in earlier chapters' or point out continuity problems in the story).The author is essentially winking at the reader, as if to say "We both know this is all pretty silly."

The plot here is absurd, convoluted, and seems not to have been entirely thought out.The pleasure in the novel comes, not from a plot that really doesn't make much sense, but rather from the writing itself.Rankin has a writing style that demands to be read out loud (if not actually spoken, at least read out loud in one's own head.)

The entire novel has an amusing tone but I can't say that anyone ever caught me laughing out loud while I read it. It did have me smiling most of the way though.This is a novel that features a boy who was raised by snails (they call him Snail Boy of course), talking vegetables that you insert in your ear, and a cabal of pinch-faced witches who fancy quilting and world domination.The novel portrays John Merrick (the Elephant Man) as an oversexed alien human hybrid spy, Queen Victoria (God Bless Her) as a party girl who parades around in diaphanous outfits wearing nothing else but high heeled clogs, Oscar Wilde as a `ladies man', and HG Wells as an invisible (literally), obnoxious and frustrated scientist.

The Witches of Chiswick is amusing enough* but lacks the big laughs needed to inspire a `four star' rating.Its incoherent plot falls apart near the end, leaving loose ends dangling everywhere.Very little of what happens makes any sense.The Witches of Chiswick may not be as funny or as inspired as Adam's The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, but if you like your science fiction mixed with humour (1 part clever, 3 parts silly) the Witches of Chiswick is an oddly entertaining novel.

* The asterisks at the bottom of the page provide some of the funniest bits in the novel.

A mostly Wonderful Book
Mr. Rankin has created a wonderful world here hats off to him.Sometimes the jokes are subtle and other times they are incredibly funny quite frankly words can't do justice to how funny parts of this book are.

You will love all the characters Will, other Will and Barry the time traveling sprout.There are also characters that are more familiar to us H.G Wells, Jack the Ripper and Queen Victoria just to name a few.

Great book, great story but the last 10 pages totally destroy whatever the author had been working towards.This is not enough to destroy a wonderful book but the ending is indeed a letdown.Either Rankin is setting things up for a sequel or he is just guilty of sloppy plot resolution.That is why it gets a fourth star and not the whole 5.

passing it on
In our 37 years of acquaintance, my brother has never recommended a book to me to read. The other day he called me from the cab of the truck he drives at work. He had to tell me about the book he was listening to on CD as he drove. That book was (of course) Robert Rankins Witches of Chiswick. On that recommendation, I went out the next day, purchased the book, interrupted the book I was reading at the time and began to read. Aside from periods of work (necessary to get money to buy books) and eating (necessary to keep energy up to read books) and sleeping (necessary... ahh who am I kidding? I didn't sleep) I read and finished the book. When it was done I was sorry there wasn't more. Funny, irreverent, at times irrelevent, and all together a rollicking, ride through the future, the past (more than one of each) and who knows where, this book is a must buy/borrow/steal/read. Oh, and there is more... Knees Up Mother Earth is the second book in the series. I'm passing on my brother's recommendation to you, the lusty reader of this review (if you're not so lusty, that's o.k. I'll recommend it to you too. However, if you can... get lusty, it'll help in the future. I'm not sure what it'll help with, just take my word for it, lusty is helpful).

In regards to the distressing plot point near the beginning... I was able to get past it and I wasn't disappointed. I have been known, in the past, to quit reading a book due to such things but, this book was all too compelling to give up on. Perhaps it was the continued references to a certain Governators movies, perhaps not (probably not but, it's as good a reason as any) but, I had to continue, you will too. If not, do it anyway.

Compelling? Ahh, why not? Compelling it shall stay.

thoroughly entertaining comic fantasy
Highly recommended for its comic riffs, manic flights of fantasy and wildly speculative science fiction - that is, its imagination.When so many books serve up all-too-predictable plot lines and dialogue, it's refreshing to find fiction that treats the reader to a smorgasboard of Imagination. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (2)

I wish I could read this wonderful sounding book
I have not read this book. Why? Although I ordered it in NOVEMBER 2005, I have yet to receive it! I have written many letters to no avail. However, I read another review for a product sold by Amazon that the purchaser had some problem with, and their problem got resolved when they wrote a bad review. That's all I'm trying to do here, really; simply get my problem resolved.

An extremely gripping read
For anyone who has read any of the Brentford trilogy this bookis simply a must. The adventures of Jim Pooley and John Omally yetagain never fail to completely abosrb and entertain the reader. Although some may find that what goes on in these novels are slightly far fetched this is the point entirely and the simple fact remains that it is entertainment of the highest degree. Robert Rankin describes himself as a teller of tall tales and this book is no exception, with a mad scientist making clones of Jesus using DNA from the Turin Shroud and the town of Brentford hosting millenium celebrations two years early in order to get it out the way with less fuss (while also being the first to take advantage of millenium funding).I would reccomend reading the other four 'Brentford' novels, The Antipope, The Brentford Triangle, East of Ealing and The Sprouts of Wrath, before reading this as it will allow you to familiarise yourself with the characters and also grow to love them and be excited at the thought of another ecounter with all of the great characters.The book focuses on two lay-abouts who are admired by myself for their lifestyle and the aventures which they get into, and is a thrilling tale as they once again go into battle with the forces of evil.This book is not all serious good vs evil stuff though as it contains much humour of which I found myself unable to control my laughter in a quiet room full of people after a riot was caused in the most funny of circumstances.If humourous science fiction is what you're looking for then this is certainly your cup of tea and comes with my highest recommendations. ... Read more

Book Description

Customer Reviews (3)

I really wish I could read this wonderful sounding book
I have not read this book. Why? Although I ordered it in NOVEMBER 2005, I have yet to receive it! I have written many letters to no avail. However, I read another review for a product sold by Amazon that the purchaser had some problem with, and their problem got resolved when they wrote a bad review. That's all I'm trying to do here, really; simply get my problem resolved.

Robert Rankin at his best
East of Ealing, a part of the "infamous" 5 book Brentford trilogy, will not disappoint the fans of the series. Find out in this book whether the flying swans patrons will once again outlive the fiendishschemes of the archvillain, or even worse, will their drinking beinterrupted ("mine will be a pint of large , neville"). If you'rea fan, you will love this book, if you are not, you have been wasting yourprecious few daily hours of sobriety ....

Robert Rankin at his best
East of Ealing, a part of the "infamous" 5 book Brentford trilogy, will not disappoint the fans of the series. Find out in this book whether the flying swans patrons will once again outlive the fiendishschemes of the archvillain, or even worse, will their drinking beinterrupted ("mine will be a pint of large , neville"). If you'rea fan, you will love this book, if you are not, you have been wasting yourprecious few daily hours of sobriety .... ... Read more

Book Description
Aliens, time travel, intergalactic soap opera, talking vegetables, and Elvis--this hilariously wild futuristic adventure has it all! On par with A Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Rankin's spectacular cosmic adventure comes to American audiences for the first time. ... Read more

Customer Reviews (6)

Extremely funny and intelligent 'fantasy'
For all fans of comic literature, Robert Rankin does the goods. This is an extremely funny and weird book, which is also quite intelligently construed. I think some of Rankin's other works are even more funny, butall in all this book is miles ahead of most other works in the genre. Ifyou like Terry Pratchett, you will definitely enjoy all of Rankin's books,and maybe even prefer the self-consciousness of his works over others. Verymuch recommended.

Elvis, a time sprout and Rex Mundi
All I can say is that this is one of the funniest books I have ever read! Not only that it is also possessed of a plot so complex that it only makes any kind of sense at all when you reach the grand finale but it also has somany running gags concerning "that amazing rotary machine gun thatBlaine used in Predator" that every time you watch said film you willhave a smile on your face. I have read many humourous sci-fi books in mytime but this one had me laughing out loud whilst sitting on a traingetting some very odd looks from fellow passangers. If only the ElvisAppreciation Society had not blocked moves to make the film...... Be thatas it may, if you are just dicovering the sprout miester for the firsttime, this is the perfect place to start and get hooked. BEWARE howeverreading in public can cause very embarrassing hesterical laughter fits!

READ MY BOOK!!
LOOK, CHEEZMOS--READ MY BOOK!READ IT!!READ IT NOW!! DO IT!

Madness.. utter Madness
Rankin has been compared to Pratchett and Adams.. this is unfair. Rankinis Rankin in the same way as Pratchett is Pratchett, they shouldn't becompared because although both are brilliant they are brilliant in quiteastoundingly different ways. All of Rankin's books have a different feel tothem, and if you didn't know, you could swear that some were written bydifferent authors.. but despite that there are always those rankintouches.. the Running Gag.. oh how we love the running gag.. not justrunning through chapters but running through every book. Armageddon themusical is a start of a trilogy of books all concerned with... yup, the endof the world. The good guys include Rex Mundi (King of the world, althoughonly by name) Elvis Aron (or Aaron, no one is really sure) Presley.. Barrythe loqacious sprout, what better could you ask for.The plot twists andweaves and is quite complex but it all makes sense and it all adds up tothe really and tottaly unexpected trick ending (no, don't skip forward,you'll spoil it) I have heard it said that it's not as Rankin-esque as"The book of Ultimate Truths" but that's one of Rankin'sStrengths, There's always something new. Buy this.. buy all his others too.You'll be happy.

Only two books have made me laugh out loud, this is one
It is hard to find a book, whereby you can say to people that it has made you laugh out loud, well this one plus Armagedon 2: They Came and Ate Us, probably the pre-curser to Truman,take the preverbial biscuit and without doubt a must read for anyone.Falls in with the other great talent of Douglas Adams, andTerry Pratchett. ... Read more