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jamiecakes0522's review against another edition
5.0
One of the most unique, strange, disturbing books I've read.
I was enthralled, horrified, shocked and impressed.
This is one that will stay with me.
I was enthralled, horrified, shocked and impressed.
This is one that will stay with me.
chelseajadee's review against another edition
4.0
Wow, genuinely questioned myself when I finished this. Why on earth did I want to re-read and why did I carry on in the first place? Murder, animal cruelty, drugs, genitals what more could you want from a book? Would definitely recommend to those who want to read something outside of their comfort zone
shmaroon's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
the_sunken_library's review against another edition
2.0
So, this has not aged well and is a classic example that, while people can write books at a young age, maybe we shouldn't publish them.
The graphic violence and endless animal cruelty is a sledgehammer attempt by a young Banks to discuss the nurture vs nature argument in psychopaths. How we are products of our environments. I would adhere to that to a certain level but the unbelievable events described by Banks make it difficult to embrace this novel as a serious attempt to explore this subject matter.
It's a b-movie gorefest at its heart doing things for shock value. The revelations within chapters, claiming to explain and contextualise the extreme behaviours of Frank and Eric, fall pretty flat.
The scenarios are outlandish: "I built a giant kite to kill my female cousin cos I killed 2 boys and you gotta balance that out in nature by taking a vagina out - them are the rules" or "I experienced something horrific in a hospital where I looked after kids who should have been dead and now I burn dogs" are just two examples of what feels like intrusive thoughts being allowed to dictate plot progression.
Nobody in this book is likeable. The narrator is presented as naive and therefor trustworthy, but you're never given enough real insight about them to actually feel sympathy for the violent little killer.
The wasp factory is a great title, but when it appears in the novel - as some sort of incredibly elaborate sacrificial maze Frank uses to commune with the factory to predict the future - it feels a bit meh. All the build up for "we told you there's fire coming" was a bit eye rolling. Eric is coming, Eric likes fire. You don't need to sacrifice wasps to a despotic machine to put two and two together.
And the reveal. I saw the twist coming after about the first 40 pages. Perhaps 30+ years ago this was a fresh and unthought of possibility. Admittedly I made the mistake of using logic to predict why the twist was what it was. But there's no logic. Apparently some people are just bastards.
It also never bothers to explain why Eric went to the effort of breaking out and making a long, firey journey home.
Tbh I am now wondering why I gave it a 2. Perhaps it's because I didn't just fling the thing into the bin. Though I did end up skim reading it. For something so chocked with death and madness, it did get a little dull at times.
Not good.
The graphic violence and endless animal cruelty is a sledgehammer attempt by a young Banks to discuss the nurture vs nature argument in psychopaths. How we are products of our environments. I would adhere to that to a certain level but the unbelievable events described by Banks make it difficult to embrace this novel as a serious attempt to explore this subject matter.
It's a b-movie gorefest at its heart doing things for shock value. The revelations within chapters, claiming to explain and contextualise the extreme behaviours of Frank and Eric, fall pretty flat.
The scenarios are outlandish: "I built a giant kite to kill my female cousin cos I killed 2 boys and you gotta balance that out in nature by taking a vagina out - them are the rules" or "I experienced something horrific in a hospital where I looked after kids who should have been dead and now I burn dogs" are just two examples of what feels like intrusive thoughts being allowed to dictate plot progression.
Nobody in this book is likeable. The narrator is presented as naive and therefor trustworthy, but you're never given enough real insight about them to actually feel sympathy for the violent little killer.
The wasp factory is a great title, but when it appears in the novel - as some sort of incredibly elaborate sacrificial maze Frank uses to commune with the factory to predict the future - it feels a bit meh. All the build up for "we told you there's fire coming" was a bit eye rolling. Eric is coming, Eric likes fire. You don't need to sacrifice wasps to a despotic machine to put two and two together.
And the reveal. I saw the twist coming after about the first 40 pages. Perhaps 30+ years ago this was a fresh and unthought of possibility. Admittedly I made the mistake of using logic to predict why the twist was what it was. But there's no logic. Apparently some people are just bastards.
It also never bothers to explain why Eric went to the effort of breaking out and making a long, firey journey home.
Tbh I am now wondering why I gave it a 2. Perhaps it's because I didn't just fling the thing into the bin. Though I did end up skim reading it. For something so chocked with death and madness, it did get a little dull at times.
Not good.
timinbc's review against another edition
4.0
If you're a broad-minded reader who has already read some books with disturbing scenes in them, you have a good chance of liking this book. It will also help to be familiar with the dry, dark, not-always-obvious aspects of British humour.
If you've read short blurbs about the book - some of which were right on the cover of the edition I read - you might be misled into thinking this is a pot-boiler shock-for-shock's-sake puddle of depravity. I just finished this book a few hours ago and as it sinks in my appreciation of it continues to grow.
It's easy to accept that a child placed in Frank's situation could grow up with all his moral dials set to the wrong numbers. Given that, his actions are as believable as those in "Lord of the Flies". He does some appalling things, but somehow they weren't as awful as I had been led to believe, and they actually made sense within the plot. Two of his three murders are sort of amusing in a twisted Edward Gorey sort of way. Brother Eric is delightfully menacing, and every few pages the plot thickens.
And occasionally Banks is fairly explicit about what aspects of society he's examining through this strange lens.
This is a very well plotted and written book, but you might dislike it and there's a fair chance you will hate it.
There's only one way to find out.
If you've read short blurbs about the book - some of which were right on the cover of the edition I read - you might be misled into thinking this is a pot-boiler shock-for-shock's-sake puddle of depravity. I just finished this book a few hours ago and as it sinks in my appreciation of it continues to grow.
It's easy to accept that a child placed in Frank's situation could grow up with all his moral dials set to the wrong numbers. Given that, his actions are as believable as those in "Lord of the Flies". He does some appalling things, but somehow they weren't as awful as I had been led to believe, and they actually made sense within the plot. Two of his three murders are sort of amusing in a twisted Edward Gorey sort of way. Brother Eric is delightfully menacing, and every few pages the plot thickens.
And occasionally Banks is fairly explicit about what aspects of society he's examining through this strange lens.
This is a very well plotted and written book, but you might dislike it and there's a fair chance you will hate it.
There's only one way to find out.
sylkeberloo's review against another edition
dark
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
spidermomsays's review against another edition
dark
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
2.5
The writing was ok but this book really dragged for me despite several shocking events and the fact that it was under 200 pages.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Animal cruelty, Animal death, and Child death
amelia___'s review against another edition
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
zoecrook's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
seesalynne09's review against another edition
3.0
Outside of the animal violence I didn't really find this that disturbing. Maybe that says more about me than it does about the book!