Vathek (World s Classics)
£10.75
Often overlooked, but a brilliant pice of English literature - Vathek the novel is peverse, twisted and politically incorrect to the extreme. The main protagonist himslef is likewise viscious and completely evil if such a thing does exist. Yet it is perhaps these two facets that help to make Vathek so compelling, so fresh and so orignal and down-right funny. That s right, if you have a wicked sense of humour and enjoy the odd toilet joke then this book is certainly for you. However, it would be wrong to suggets that Vathek is nothing more than a series of smutty jokes and grusome scenes. It is much more. Beckford supposedly wrote the novel within 48hrs - without sleep! In spite of this he has somehow managed to create a world that pushes the imaginative envelope to the extreme. This book will live with me for life. READ IT!
not an easy read - I read Vathek in my late teens when I had a fascination with all things macabre. I was not dissapointed with Vathek on this point but what irritated me then, and still does now, is the rather contrived and inpenetrable style in which it is written (or possibly translated). There is not much of a story to it, but some of the episodes are entertaining- I was particularly amused by the one about someone having half their beard burned off. If you are a big fan of the gothic genre then you ll probably take great delight in Vathek, but for the more general reader it is something of a pain. The elements are there, it s just not done with enough finesse.I read an unillustrated edition myself- I m sure that Redon s illustrations add a lot to the reading experience.