{"product_id":"fowlers-end-9781939140487","title":"Fowlers End","description":"\u003ch2\u003eFowlers End: Gerald Kersh's Comic Masterpiece\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"One of the great comic novels of the century.\" - Anthony Burgess\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eSet in the bleakest corner of London during the Great Depression, \u003cem\u003eFowlers End\u003c\/em\u003e delivers a Rabelaisian comedy that has earned its place among the finest English novels of the 20th century. Gerald Kersh's 1957 masterwork combines the grotesque humor of Dickens with the satirical edge of \u003cem\u003eThe Beggar's Opera\u003c\/em\u003e, creating an unforgettable portrait of desperation, cunning, and revenge.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eThe Story\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eDaniel Laverock, starving and nearly penniless, accepts the only job available: managing the Pantheon Theater, a dilapidated silent cinema in Fowlers End, one of London's most godforsaken neighborhoods. His employer, Sam Yudenow, initially appears to be an amusing old fool but reveals himself as an incorrigible swindler and one of English literature's great comic grotesques. When Yudenow's schemes cross the line, Laverock and his co-worker Copper Baldwin devise their own grand plan to teach him a lesson, with hilarious and unpredictable consequences.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eCritical Acclaim\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"[A]n exuberant romp with a parcel of grotesques in a truly horrible nor'-nor'-easterly suburb of London . . . great fun.\" - \u003cem\u003eManchester Guardian\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"Rabelaisian, vigorous, readable, inventive and bizarre.\" - Simon Raven\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\"The very best of his works.\" - Harlan Ellison\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eAbout This Edition\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis Valancourt Books edition features an introduction by award-winning novelist and longtime Kersh admirer Michael Moorcock. Published in paperback format, it brings this underground classic back to readers who appreciate dark comedy, social satire, and literary fiction that captures the essence of mid-century London.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch2\u003eWhy Read Fowlers End?\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eGerald Kersh (1911-1968) crafted a novel that remains one of the funniest works of English fiction and one of the best books ever written about London. With echoes of Rabelais and Dickens, \u003cem\u003eFowlers End\u003c\/em\u003e offers vigorous prose, inventive plotting, and memorable characters that have made it a cult classic among readers who value sharp social observation wrapped in irresistible humor.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Valancourt Books","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50493241524498,"sku":"9781939140487","price":20.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_e1525d9b-4695-4aea-a4c4-81211b2ea070.jpg?v=1730639936","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/fowlers-end-9781939140487","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}