Voyage to the End of the Room - Tibor Fischer

Voyage to the End of the Room is extremely difficult to classify. It's a kind of surreal-travelogue-slash-memoir-cum-black-humoured-detective story - but only kind of. This is the first of this author's books that I've read, so perhaps he's definable only by reference to himself, in the manner of Haruki Murakami, for instance. In any case, the plot is kick-started by the arrival of a letter addressed to our protagonist, Oceane, which simply reads: 'Hello!' and is signed; 'Walter.' The problem here is that Walter is supposed to have been dead for the last ten years. Oceane is a relatively successful computer graphics designer - comfortably well off, as she ...  Read the complete review

I can't remember how this book ended up on my wish list, I must have read a favourable review of it somewhere or other. But after languishing on the wish list for a while, it ended up in a Waterstone's bag and then keeping me company on the train for a few days. Now, I'll start by saying, I'm not sure if I enjoyed it or not. The story line is certainly unique, and the body of the text is well written, with patches of pleasantly dark humour, although it can be confusing at times (and not intentionally, I don't think). Our narrator is Oceane - one time sex performer now living the life of a recluse in London. She's financially solvent thanks to a spot of ...  Read the complete review