I’m rubbish at reading. In that I start books, then sort of forget to finish them. That’s why I have some six books on the go at any one time. History, music, novels, autobiographies. When it comes to John Niven;s books however, they’re nothing short of ‘un-put-down-able’. If you like music and a bit of reading, then Kill Your Friends by Niven is a must read. It’s a twisted tale of a music industry man, and his travels in a world of gigs, deals and some dodgy characters. It is the finest, most entertaining book about music I have read, and there were rumours of it being made into a film. Recently I was persuaded to read Niven’s novel The Amateurs, which is all about a golfer. Now, I know nothing about golf, and actually start to doze off the minute anyone starts talking to me about golf. So to read the book, for me, was something of an achievement. Turns out you need not like, understand or even have a passing in interest in the dull sport to enjoy it; Niven writes so fluidly, beautifully and engagingly that he could write about a mathematical exam and make it captivating.
His latest novel, The Second Coming, is genius. God is pissed off with the world (fair enough), with what we’ve done with it, with what we’ve become. So he sends Jesus down to sort us out and teach us to be nice. JC arrives in the form of a struggling, poor musician in New York, and ends up auditioning for America’s Got Talent. The story, amazingly, is highly believable, such is the authors ability to describe, conjure up images and make up some hilarious and pretty damn cool situations. It makes you think, it makes you ponder. The laughs come thick and fast. The story is brilliant.
There are music references throughout, my favourites being Jesus’ t shirt collection, with Folk Implosion and Mogwai ones making appearances. If the book had a soundtrack, it would be a beautiful mix of Americana old and new, both upbeat and modern, yet classic and timeless. You know those horrible quotes on books that go ‘I couldn’t put it down!’? Well I couldn’t put it down.I’m rubbish at reading. In that I start books, then sort of forget to finish them. That’s why I have some six books on the go at any one time. History, music, novels, autobiographies. When it comes to John Niven;s books however, they’re nothing short of ‘un-put-down-able’. If you like music and a bit of reading, then Kill Your Friends by Niven is a must read. It’s a twisted tale of a music industry man, and his travels in a world of gigs, deals and some dodgy characters. It is the finest, most entertaining book about music I have read, and there were rumours of it being made into a film. Recently I was persuaded to read Niven’s novel The Amateurs, which is all about a golfer. Now, I know nothing about golf, and actually start to doze off the minute anyone starts talking to me about golf. So to read the book, for me, was something of an achievement. Turns out you need not like, understand or even have a passing in interest in the dull sport to enjoy it; Niven writes so fluidly, beautifully and engagingly that he could write about a mathematical exam and make it captivating.
His latest novel, The Second Coming, is genius. God is pissed off with the world (fair enough), with what we’ve done with it, with what we’ve become. So he sends Jesus down to sort us out and teach us to be nice. JC arrives in the form of a struggling, poor musician in New York, and ends up auditioning for America’s Got Talent. The story, amazingly, is highly believable, such is the authors ability to describe, conjure up images and make up some hilarious and pretty damn cool situations. It makes you think, it makes you ponder. The laughs come thick and fast. The story is brilliant.
There are music references throughout, my favourites being Jesus’ t shirt collection, with Folk Implosion and Mogwai ones making appearances. If the book had a soundtrack, it would be a beautiful mix of Americana old and new, both upbeat and modern, yet classic and timeless. You know those horrible quotes on books that go ‘I couldn’t put it down!’? Well I couldn’t put it down.