By: Alan Bennett Publisher: Picador Average Rating: Binding: Paperback Label: Picador Number of Items: 1 Number of Pages: 704 Publication Date: March 20, 2007 Release Date: March 20, 2007
An instant bestseller in the U.K., Untold Stories brings together the finest and funniest writing by one of England's best-known literary figures. In his first major collection since Writing Home, Alan Bennett opens with a poignant memoir of growing up in Leeds and closes with an account of his cancer diagnosis and recovery, with everything from his much-celebrated essays to his irreverent comic pieces and reviews in between.
I'm certainly glad they're no longer untold It's a whopping 600+ page hardcover that's been on my bookshelf for years. Something my lovely wife found, but I'm the first to find time to read it. Amazing how fast he pulled me right in with a great story written extremely well. As I take my time and enjoy its many pages, I have to say it's one of the most honest books you'll ever read. I'm looking forward to getting back to it, but I have to save this book review first. For you.
A big disappointment I had read "The Lady in the Van" in the London Review of Books years ago and enjoyed it thoroughly, so I was hoping for more of the same sort. This, however, is typical LRB writing in which the most frequently used pronoun (or indeed, any other word) is "I". The first part of the book, a childhood memoir with much about the author's parents is mildly interesting. The remainder is sheer self-indulgence. So bad I wouldn't even donate it to a library.
Conversations with a friend. I gobbled this book down. It was better than a box of chocolates. For 3 nights I sat on my couch & felt as if I were having a dialogue with a particularly entertaining companion.
An Absolutely Delightful Read I don't quite know how to describe this book in a way that will convey enough information to give you an inking if you would like it or not.
First some description perhaps:
This is a somewhat random collection of writings from one of the premier British playwrights of our time. They vary from reasonably serious such as the introductory story on his father and mother, and the concluding story on his surviving cancer.
Other stories deal with some of the plays he's written. The story of 'The Lady in the Van' is particularly appealing. You see, Mrs. Shepherd drove her van into his garden in 1974 and asked if she could park it there for a while.
'A while' turned out to be fifteen years. And she lived in the van. In 1999 he wrote a play about her that starred Maggie Smith. And the section describing the play is a cross between the story of Mrs. Shepherd (he finds a Mr. Shepherd very hard to imagine) and the writing of the play.
Some dialog from a draft version of the play:
'Mr. Bennett. Will you look under the van?'
'What for?'
'One of these explosive devices. There was another bomb last night and I think I may be next on the list.'
'I can't see anything because of all your plastic bags.'
'Yes and the explosive's plastic so it wouldn't show, possibly. Are there any wires? The wireless tells you to look for wires. Nothing that looks like a timing device?'
'There's an old biscuit tin.'
Rolling on the floor laughing? No. A delight to read? Absolutely.
Delightful, but Hard to Describe I don't quite know how to describe this book in a way that will convey enough information to give you an inking if you would like it or not.
First some description perhaps:
This is a somewhat random collection of writings from one of the premier British playwrights of our time. They vary from reasonably serious such as the introductory story on his father and mother, and the concluding story on his surviving cancer.
Other stories deal with some of the plays he's written. The story of 'The Lady in the Van' is particularly appealing. You see, Mrs. Shepherd drove her van into his garden in 1974 and asked if she could park it there for a while.
'A while' turned out to be fifteen years. And she lived in the van. In 1999 he wrote a play about her that starred Maggie Smith. And the section describing the play is a cross between the story of Mrs. Shepherd (he finds a Mr. Shepherd very hard to imagine) and the writing of the play.
Some dialog from a draft version of the play:
'Mr. Bennett. Will you look under the van?'
'What for?'
One of these explosive devices. There was another bomb last night and I think I may be next on the list.'
'I can't see anything because of all your plastic bags.'
'Yes and the explosive's plastic so it wouldn't show, possibly. Are there any wires? The wireless tells you to look for wires. Nothing that looks like a timing device?'
'There's an old biscuit tin.'
Rolling on the floor laughing? No. A delight to read? Absolutely.
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