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Overview
Booker Prize Finalist
"Wickedly funny." —The New York Times
Imagine an England where all the pubs are quaint, where the Windsors behave themselves (mostly), where the cliffs of Dover are actually white, and where Robin Hood and his merry men really are merry. This is precisely what visionary tycoon, Sir Jack Pitman, seeks to accomplish on the Isle of Wight, a "destination" where tourists can find replicas of Big Ben (half size), Princess Di's grave, and even Harrod's (conveniently located inside the tower of London).
Martha Cochrane, hired as one of Sir Jack's resident "no-people," ably assists him in realizing his dream. But when this land of make-believe gradually gets horribly and hilariously out of hand, Martha develops her own vision of the perfect England. Julian Barnes delights us with a novel that is at once a philosophical inquiry, a burst of mischief, and a moving elegy about authenticity and nationality.
Synopsis
Booker Prize Finalist
"Wickedly funny." —The New York Times
Imagine an England where all the pubs are quaint, where the Windsors behave themselves (mostly), where the cliffs of Dover are actually white, and where Robin Hood and his merry men really are merry. This is precisely what visionary tycoon, Sir Jack Pitman, seeks to accomplish on the Isle of Wight, a "destination" where tourists can find replicas of Big Ben (half size), Princess Di's grave, and even Harrod's (conveniently located inside the tower of London).
Martha Cochrane, hired as one of Sir Jack's resident "no-people," ably assists him in realizing his dream. But when this land of make-believe gradually gets horribly and hilariously out of hand, Martha develops her own vision of the perfect England. Julian Barnes delights us with a novel that is at once a philosophical inquiry, a burst of mischief, and a moving elegy about authenticity and nationality.
National Review - Roger Kimball
If the word "postmodern" makes your heart go pit-a-pat, you will probably love England, England, Julian Barnes' latest pomo effort...[A] mildly dystopian fantasy full of profundities about the unreliability of memory and the transformation of history into kitsch.
Editorials
Time
Barnes' very funny, very sour new novel, recreates England as a theme park on the Isle of Wight. The park is the brainstorm of Sir Jack Pitman, an overweening press lord, and his staff members, one of whom has doubts.Michiko Kakutani
Mr. Barnes uses his copious talents as a writer...to turn the saga of England, England into an uproarious farce....and he satirizes the ideas that the English hold about themselves....[and he] tries to link his two narratives by suggesting parallels between a nation's invention of its own mythology and an individual's invention of a self....two finely turned tales... —The New York TimesRichard Eder
The three parts of the novel are told in contrasting tones....[T]he smart and accomplished "England, England" section....is the book's heart....[I]t plays out a lavish satire on Britian today extrapolated into a day or two after tomorrow....This is satire at its best, and there is much...that is ingenious, funny or both.—New York Times Book Review
Roger Kimball
If the word "postmodern" makes your heart go pit-a-pat, you will probably love England, England</>, Julian Barnes' latest pomo effort...[A] mildly dystopian fantasy full of profundities about the unreliability of memory and the transformation of history into kitsch.—National Review