It’s Not All Puppies and Kittens

I’ve got quite a substantial ‘to read’ pile, as one could reasonably expect if you’ve seen my bookshelves. Although I’ve also got a ever growing ‘wish list’ kept in a pretty journal, but as much as I love writing lists, I’m not one for writing journal entries in an actual book. Far from being a pro writer, I thought I could still keep track of what I read here. They’ll only be short, they might not even be useful but hey, here goes.  

The Unknown Terrorist by Richard Flanagan.

Important point –> I don’t actually own this book, I’ve borrowed it (so thats one more book I can fit on the shelves later). I was really   looking forward to reading this book, the reviews promised a thriller with an interesting premise – ordinary day, ordinary person becomes the country’s most wanted terror suspect. I can’t say it failed, but I can’t help but feel that what this book is promoted as and what it actually is are quite different. It’s a great commentary on the social and political situations of ‘present day’ Australia, the widespread fear of ‘terrorism’ and the influence and power of the media. It even manages to be mostly well written.

There are some really excellent bits of prose, but they are thinly spread amongst some fairly mundane, overly descriptive text. Then there’s the plot. It had definite potential but it just didn’t get that exciting,  unless you count an increasing desire to slap some sense into the main character ( a pole dancer with ’secrets’ known as “The Doll”. Some unexploded bombs are found in stadiums at Homebush. The Doll meet a nice guy, spend the night with him and was caught on security footage entering a building. The guy is a terror suspect and “they” (the government) are searching for his accomplice. Who looks a lot like The Doll. A real lot like The Doll. Oh wait, silly, it IS her.  Quite obviously, the appropriate thing to do when you discover that you are an innocent person suspected of terrible things, is to start to act like a criminal. Go underground, steal guns, try to shoot people, get your friends in trouble and what not. Not say, seek legal aid, or profess your innocence. Of course not. Similarly, the time for self reflection is right after you decide that your life is actually all a lie and before you try to get yourself shot. 

Despite my negativity, this is a decent read if you’re not expecting a fast paced, tightly written crime thriller. It’s had mixed reviews even from actual, respectable critics. If you like books that comment on life and current affairs with a story thrown it, it’s got a lot more going for it.