Modern Classics Ballad of Peckham Rye (Penguin Modern Classics) - Softcover

Spark, Muriel

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0141188359 ISBN 13: 9780141188355

Publisher: Penguin Classic, 2006

Synopsis

A man of devilish charm and enterprising spirit, Dougal Douglas is employed to revitalize the ailing firm of Meadows, Meade & Grindley. He succeeds, but not quite in the way his employer intended. Strange things begin to happen as Dougal exerts an uncanny influence on the inhabitants of Peckham Rye and brings lies, tears, blackmail and even murder into the lives of all he meets, from Miss Merle Coverdale, head of the typing pool, to Beauty, the resident femme fatale, and even Mr Druce, the unsuspecting Managing Director himself.

About this title

About the Author:

William Boyd was born in 1952 in Accra, Ghana and grew up there and in Nigeria. His first novel, A Good Man in Africa (1981), won the Whitbread First Novel Award and the Somerset Maugham Prize. His other novels include An Ice Cream War (1982, shortlisted for the 1982 Booker Prize and winner of the John Llewellyn Rhys Prize), Stars and Bars (1984), The New Confessions (1987), Brazzaville Beach (1990, winner of the McVitie Prize and the James Tait Black Memorial Prize), The Blue Afternoon (1993, winner of the 1993 Sunday Express Book of the Year Award), Armadillo (1998), Any Human Heart (2002, winner of the Prix Jean Monnet) and Restless (2006, winner of the Costa Novel of the Year Award). His latest novel is Sweet Caress (2015). Some seventeen of his screenplays have been filmed, including The Trench (1999), which he also directed, and he is also the author of four collections of short stories: On the Yankee Station (1981), The Destiny of Nathalie 'X' (1995), Fascination (2004) and The Dream Lover (2008). He is married and divides his time between London and South West France.

From AudioFile:

Spark's 1960 satirical novel is given a fresh reading by Nick Rawlinson. This is a curious novel, and Rawlinson's reading walks carefully between performance and narration. Most surprising is Rawlinson's protean ability to flip between Irish and Scottish accents. This is a challenging novel, as Spark allows the audience plenty of latitude in deciding on the true character of Dougal Douglas. Rawlinson's rapid delivery moves the story along quickly, sometimes too quickly for Spark's dry British wit to fully bloom. This recording is a fine introduction to the canon of Muriel Spark and stands on its own as an unusual but engaging piece of modern fiction. R.F. © AudioFile 2005, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

About this edition

• Publisher: Penguin Classic
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0141188359
• ISBN 13: 9780141188355
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 144