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A review by thebobsphere
Christie Malry's Own Double-entry by B.S. Johnson
5.0
My first B.S. Johnson was The Unfortunates, which consisted of a book divided into separate pamphlet-like chapters, which could be read in any order. It was an enjoyable read but I did feel that the concept overshadowed both the story and inner message.
Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry was Johnson’s last novel and it is everything I like in fiction. It is playful, anarchic, has some ghastly puns, rude moments and it challenges the boundaries of fiction. Plus it’s good a fine plot.
Christie Malry wants to be near money so he decides to work in a bank. This doesn’t work out so he then is hired as an accountant at a firm which makes chocolates and baked goods. There he discovers the Double-Entry booking system, where every transaction is recorded as a debit and a credit, the end sum has to balance itself.
Malry then starts to apply this system to life. Therefore if someone is unpleasant to him, he has to pay that person back equally so that the debit is fulfilled. At first it starts on a prankster level (think of the tricks Amelie plays on the greengrocer) and then it escalates to cartoonish levels of destruction.
In a meta-novel twist the book’s narrator is having a chat with Christie Malry and is then telling us readers his exploits.
Other than a criticism of how a novel should be structured, Christie Malry’s own double-entry serves as a great middle finger to organised businesses. In it’s own way this is quite a punk novel and one which is a lot of fun to read. If one thought that experimental fiction (although Johnson hated the term) was boring or unreadable, think again. This novel is a box of firecrackers whizzing in all directions.
Once again, this was another gem which was featured on the Backlisted Podcast . So far it’s helping with all those gaps I have when it comes to classics so I’m going to try read every book featured.
Christie Malry’s Own Double-Entry was Johnson’s last novel and it is everything I like in fiction. It is playful, anarchic, has some ghastly puns, rude moments and it challenges the boundaries of fiction. Plus it’s good a fine plot.
Christie Malry wants to be near money so he decides to work in a bank. This doesn’t work out so he then is hired as an accountant at a firm which makes chocolates and baked goods. There he discovers the Double-Entry booking system, where every transaction is recorded as a debit and a credit, the end sum has to balance itself.
Malry then starts to apply this system to life. Therefore if someone is unpleasant to him, he has to pay that person back equally so that the debit is fulfilled. At first it starts on a prankster level (think of the tricks Amelie plays on the greengrocer) and then it escalates to cartoonish levels of destruction.
In a meta-novel twist the book’s narrator is having a chat with Christie Malry and is then telling us readers his exploits.
Other than a criticism of how a novel should be structured, Christie Malry’s own double-entry serves as a great middle finger to organised businesses. In it’s own way this is quite a punk novel and one which is a lot of fun to read. If one thought that experimental fiction (although Johnson hated the term) was boring or unreadable, think again. This novel is a box of firecrackers whizzing in all directions.
Once again, this was another gem which was featured on the Backlisted Podcast . So far it’s helping with all those gaps I have when it comes to classics so I’m going to try read every book featured.