The Last Word

Hanif Kureishi

A mischievous satire which pokes fun at the luvvies and pretensions of the literary world. If you need to like the characters you may find this a challenging read. Clearly you are meant to find their amorality repulsive as well as funny, their predatory sexuality hypocritical compared to their liberal credentials. So, if you are feeling cynical about big name authors and the aura of publishing, this may be for you.

Extract

Lucy gave them each some MDMA, and took them to a club where an obese woman vomited over the floor. Julia suggested they go somewhere else - not Julia's, as her brother could be there, no doubt tattooing himself on the forehead with a penknife; and not Lucy's, because of her child. The girls were keen for him to take them to a hotel in town. The bought alcohol and cocaine, closed the curtains, turned off their phones and didn't emerge until the next afternoon.

Parallels