Number 11
A novel
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
Beginning in the early years of this century, Number 11 follows two friends, Alison and Rachel, as they come of age. As the narrative progresses from the aftermath of the Iraq War to the present day, its scope broadens to include others who are variously connected to these two girls: Alison’s mother, a has-been singer, competes on a grisly reality TV show; Rachel’s university mentor finally confronts her late husband’s obsessive search for a German film he saw as a child; a young police constable investigates the seemingly unrelated deaths of two stand-up comedians; and a giant spider lurks in the darkness beneath one of London’s most staggeringly expensive neighborhoods. Combining his signature humor, psychological insight and social commentary, Jonathan Coe holds up a disquieting, unforgiving mirror in which to reflect a world where the systems are broken and everyone can—and perhaps must—name his or her own price.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In this sequel to The Winshaw Legacy, two childhood friends, Rachel and Alison, struggle to maintain their friendship and come of age in an England overrun with the alienating forces of modernity: austerity, social media, and capitalism run amok. The book's point of view is widely, admirably panoramic, detailing Rachel's early obsession with the death of David Kelly, Alison's mother's stint on a Survivor-style reality show, and an Oxford professor's search for a long-lost German film reel, as well as the travails of two ideologically mismatched detectives, a bloviating right-wing columnist, and a Romanian dog walker who may or may not transform into a giant spider. Rachel is later employed as a tutor for the children of a tax-dodging billionaire, Sir Gilbert Gunn, whose mammoth home expansion includes the excavation and construction of an 11-story basement. The disparate plots draw near one another but never fully meet in action or in theme; nevertheless, this is still an entertaining satire.
