2006-09-27 Simply awful

A man who doesn't wear his learning lightly, Ben Thompson has written one of the worst books I have ever read. I ploughed through it for the occassional nugget thrown up by his interviews with various comedians, but it was awfully hard going. If he refers to Henri Bergson once, he does it a thousand times, and what is with those sub-Pratchett footnotes, ostensibly offering information, but mainly attempts at humerous digressions which most definitely do not work. There is a good book in here, although it would only be around 50 pages long - the remainder of the 400-odd pages is taken up with the author's tedious, self aggrandising, meretricious nonsense. Not recommended.