If this isn't going to be confusing enough, both stories are written with a phonetic approach to dialogue. His life has been a series of wrong turns, and he lashes out at others so that he doesn’t have to admit that the fault is all his. Over the course of a further five hundred years the book has become the central religious text for the Kingdom of Ing hunkering on the archipelago that climate change floods have made of central and southern England. It takes a long time to melt the two kilometre thick ice sheet over Antarctica, so generating the 216 feet sea level rises that would make an island of Hampstead heath, for that of course is what Ham is. The Book of Dave might not put a spring in one’s step – it is an uncompromising and bleak book – but it should shake a person from their lethargy with the aim to a little self-improvement here and there.

However, such views are considered heretical and the prophet (geezer) who discovered them is fated to be accused of heresy (flying) and his fate is bound to that of Carl. This book felt somewhat moralistic and at times utterly dry and overly ambitious, especially considering how flaccid the ending was.Effectively, the Book of Dave is a written document by a London cab driver with high rage levels and a mental illness, which was taken out of context and used to form a new religion, with hilarious (and tragic) consequences.

About halfway through I wondered if the future chapters were a psychotic episode that a character was having in the past, instead of an actual tale of a far future society.She is one of the very few authors who provide readers with the whole shebang: pace, plot, and darkly unexpected twists and turns. It is his teachings that strongly influence his food and help to ensure Lu Ban is different to any other restaurant in the country. Self is known for his satirical, grotesque and fantastic novels and short stories set in seemingly parallel universes. You'd almost feel sorry for the black taxi drivers that are as familiar as the red route buses in London. I will try and read it a second time at some point, as I am sure I will get more from it with repeated readings, but this started off difficult and never really was comfortable (or completely enjoyable) reading.