The Great Pursuit - Tom Sharpe

Anyone familiar with Tom Sharpe will know that his tales twist and turn leaving his characters in ridiculous, but strangely believable situations. Those of you familiar with him through "Blott on the Landscape" and "Wilt" on TV have not seen the best of him (because they simply could not show his best humour on TV and keep their licence!)and if you like black humour, you have not read the master until you've read Sharpe. In The Great Pursuit, a timid and shy would-be writer by the name of Peter Piper agrees to pose as the author (the real author wishes to remain anonymous) of a new book. What Piper does not know, is that the content of ...

The story of a publisher, Frensic, who convinces an unimaginative would-be author, Peter Piper, to pretend authorship of a wildly successful, pornographic novel. It's a funny book, though not riotously so: more witty and arch, or getting its humor by deflating stereotypes. Its plot is devious and twisted, but though there's sex and a riot and some explosions, it seems restrained compared to other Sharpe books.The characters were as likely and unlikely as ever I must say I don't care much for the abrupt, highly unsatisfying ending. Start reading Sharpe with Wilt or Blott ...