The Book of Chameleons by Jose Eduardo Agualusa (42/81)

Category: Themed Titles – Animals

I was drawn to this book because I’d heard about its unusual narrator – a gecko. The gecko observes the comings and goings from his vantage point on the wall of the house of Félix Ventura, an Albino who makes a living by faking histories and ancestors for prominent people.

The story is very much about identity with the chameleons of the title referring to all of the characters here. Even the gecko is not just a gecko as he remembers a past life when he was a man.

It was a surprisingly easy read, despite the unusual narrator, unfamiliar names and place, and descriptions of dreams.

Attack of the Unsinkable Rubber Ducks by Christopher Brookmyre (33/81)

Category: Themed Titles – Animals

I loved Christopher Brookmyre’s early books and will admit to having a slight crush on his investigative journalist character, Jack Parlabane, but I was under-whelmed by some of his later books and I haven’t bothered with quit e a few of the recent ones. But if “Attack of the Unsinkable Rubber Ducks” is anything to go by, he is back on form. For anyone who isn’t familiar with his books, he has been described as similar to Carl Hiassen, but his stories are set in Scotland.

Once more it features the cynical journalist Parlabane, but this time he is narrating the book from beyond the grave, and the theme of the book is the paranormal and fake psychics. The title refers to some people’s unshakeable beliefs despite huge evidence to contrary. Essentially this is a crime novel, but the trickery of the celebrity mediums and the human psychology behind it makes for an interesting setting.

Yet again, this is a book with a split narrative. Parlabane is the main narrator and his deadpan Scottish humour will be familiar to anyone who has read Brookmyre’s other books, but he shares the narration with a student caught up in the events and a female journalist with opposing views to Parlabane. The parts by the latter are dryer in style than the rest and the opening chapter seemed to drag, but it is worth sticking with as the story soon picks up.

I guessed a couple of the twists before they were revealed but that didn’t spoil my enjoyment of this. A good light read.

Giraffe by J M Ledgard (27/81)

Category: Themed Titles – Animals

This is a fictional retelling of a real life incident. In Czechoslovakia, under communist rule in the 1970s, the largest ever group of giraffes were brought from Africa to be breed in captivity. Like many things in that time and place, this was a tool for propaganda, but something goes wrong, leading to a horrific outcome. I’m trying to avoid too much of a spoiler here, but to be honest the blurb for the book gives it away.

However, knowing how things end does not spoil the reading of this great book. How the story is told is a wonderful journey in itself. The story is split between different narrators, including a scientist (an expert in blood flow), a sleep-walker, a hunter and best of all, a giraffe. Their differing perspectives, especially as it moves towards its awful conclusion, add to the texture of the novel.

The book also has some brilliant descriptions of giraffes and interesting musings on man’s relationships with animals. Added to this, the looming presence of the communist regime make “Giraffe” a fascinating read, and all the more interesting for being based on real events.

And despite the illustration of a giraffe on the cover, this is far from being a children’s book.

White Tiger by Aravind Adiga (11/81)

Category: Themed Title – Animals

This is the most recent Booker Prize winner, and I’m afraid to say it hasn’t done anything to redeem the prize in my eyes after the dreadful The Gathering which won the previous year. It is not so much that it is a bad book, it just isn’t a great book and it makes me wonder that the competition was like if this was the book that won.

The book is narrated by Balram Halwai in the form of a series of emails to the leader of China who is due to make a visit to India. Within these messages, he describes the new economy of India and his raise from a lowly driver to a successful businessman. The name the White Tiger refers to him being a rare creature that comes along only once or twice in each generation.

The book is full of sly observations about the economy built on outsourcing, the Caste system and the differences between urban and rural life. At times it threatened to be interesting or exciting but then it just fizzled away again. I also had the impression that the author was writing specifically for Western audiences in this portrayal of various Indian types.

Overall, rather a disappointing read.

The Boy Who Kicked Pigs by Tom Baker (3/81)

Category: Themed Titles - Animals

The first book in my wild card category where the books are chosen because they have a type of animal in the title, which I hope should make for some interesting reading.

This book was in a list of someone’s all time favourite reads who had similar taste to me, so I bought a copy when I found it available cheaply. It is a very short book, just over 120 pages, but alternate pages are used for illustrations, so there is not much text and I read it in about an hour.

It is about an evil little boy who delights in hating other people and making them suffer. The book is the story of his exploits and ultimate downfall. It is preposterous and gory, but a lot of fun if you have a dark sense of humour. I’m not sure whether this is intended for adults or children – I don’t think it is suitable for younger children, but it has a similar appeal as the books of Roald Dahl.

Author Tom Baker is best known for playing Doctor Who, although in the UK in recent years he has done a lot of voiceover work. He has a very distinctive voice that I could easily imagine reading the words of this book, which I think added to its quirkiness.

Whilst the text did make me smirk and even laugh at loud at one point, equal credit must be given to the illustrator David Roberts whose witty drawings enhance the story enormously.

This book certainly isn’t going to be to everyone’s tastes and the ending is particularly stomach-churning, but if you like black comedy it is a good quick read.