Books: The Restraint Of Beasts

  • Share

The novelty factor runs high with this first novel, nominated for a Booker Prize and written by a fellow who drives a big red London bus, and who, British newspapers feverishly reported, received a $1.6 million advance, which later turned out to be $16,000 (he still drives that bus). But this hilariously macabre tale of Tam and Richie, two Scottish fence builders who--once they can be dragged from their slovenly trailer, their cigarette breaks and their pub crawling--keep accidentally killing people on the job, marks a terrific debut. As the story veers into increasingly surreal territory--just who, or what, is that new fence Tam and Richie are building meant to keep in?--Mills makes the life of the manual laborer deadly but never dull.

--By Elizabeth Gleick

Time.com on Digg

POWERED BY digg

Quotes of the Day »

EXCERPT FROM DOCUMENTS given by the CIA to British intelligence officials about Ethiopian-born British resident Binyam Mohamed, who alleges he was tortured at the behest of U.S. authorities after his 2002 arrest in Pakistan
For use in rail of Articles page or Section Fronts pages. Duplicate and change name as necesssary to distinguish.