#5 Platform - Breakfast on Pluto

A far sight grittier than the movie, but still beautiful.

Book #15: Breakfast on Pluto
Author: Patrick McCabe
Provenance: Bookmooch

I picked this up a while back because I'd seen the movie, and because I'd always meant to read Patrick McCabe. I've been curious for years, and this gave me a chance to get into one. I wouldn't have called the movie happy, although it goes out on a fairly high note, but this is grades below happy. Not that you walk away depressed, but perhaps sobered.

This is the story of Patrick "Pussy" Braden, a transsexual growing up in Ireland and then moving to London during the IRA bombing period. He was abandoned as a baby by his mother, the child of an affair (and a probably non-consensual one) between a young woman, say 16 or so, and the village priest. So he has all sorts of issues, and it's clear from the frame of the book that he's been in long-term psychiatric care from pretty early on. The story has a lot of dark bits to it, but not gruesomely so.

The thing that really sells this book is the style; much of the dirty bits (Pussy becomes a prostitute, you see) and the violent bits are skimmed past in interesting ways, and yet, at other times, in his fantasies, come out in some detail. The style, almost breathless, spinning words and rambling scenery and such, is just great. You really buy the character, and his view on the world. That world is dark and crazy here, and that's remarked upon as well, but Pussy makes his way through.

This is short, and a fairly fast read, but not light. If you want to try it, and you're interested in the time period, I'd say go for it. Just don't expect the movie when you do.

Next up: Florence of Arabia. Already done, actually.

#5 Platform - Florence of Arabia

See, the Middle East actually can be funny.

Book #16: Florence of Arabia
Author: Christopher Buckley
Provenance: Bought online from amazon.com

Another fast and fun read from Buckley. This one has the same style and panache as the others, and so if you liked them, you'll like this, too. It's not his best work, but it's not his worst, and besides, his ceiling is quite high, anyway.

In this one, a State Department official proposes that the best way to achieve lasting stability in the Middle East is to emancipate the women there, and starts a TV network catering to changing women's views of the world. It turns out to be successful, and things spiral wildly out of control in interesting ways. I won't detail the plot, but it certainly goes in directions I didn't expect, and was very enjoyable.

Stylistically, I think it works very well, although there were a couple of loose ends around, but they didn't occur to me until I was writing this, so it wasn't that bad at all. It's a fun read, on a topic you don't normally find in the satire sections (at least, done well), so if you like the political satire genre, I'd say go for it.

Next up: The War of the Flowers. A brick, yes, but one I've had for a long time, and that I think I'll try again.