Shrike by Quentin S. Crisp

Here you might catch fleeting glimpses of Haruki Murakami, Kafū Nagai – or other influences, like unexpected but subtle spills from Monkey Brain Sushi, or perhaps the haunting and emotive verse of Izumi Shikibu:

“There is not even a moment of calmness…
In the heart that loves the blossoms,
the wind is already blowing…”

Blowing in deed for Brett Stokes as he meditates on life, death and literature: convinced that a Shrike inhabits the garden of the recently widowed Mrs. Kunisada; and the Shrike, as we all know, loves to impale its prey upon thorns – thus enabling it to tear the flesh in nice beak-size potions for its immediate consumption; when suitably replete, the bird will simply leave uneaten flesh on its thorny larder and return for a fresh peck at a later time…not for nothing is it nicknamed the “butcher bird”.

It is late Autumn, a time when Fujiwara no Tameie tells us:

“I let go the autumn
at the edge of the broad sky,
among the fleeting clouds”

But Stokes in that garden finds the spectacular colours of the Autumn leaves quite fascinating; in the soft Autumnal light it is quite apparent that soon this splendor will fade to arboreal nakedness; but for now the colours working upon his imagination blur the edges of reality; and just as the morning dew drips from the tips of branches to the shaded roots, so his existence is like a simple delay between birth and death; where the central relationship between Stokes and the widow develops, and his obsession with the Shrike grows…

A fascinating, quite unique work blending motifs from Japanese and English literature in a wholly original way. Quentin S. Crisp, the man who told us: “Life was a funny thing that happened to me on the way to the grave.” And “Never keep up with the Joneses. Drag them down to your level.” Has produced a startling novella, which Peedeel recommends to one and all of you – Quentin’s is certainly a unique voice in this world of plastic pap, and one that should be more widely recognised.

Go purchase his book NOW. Hardcover HERE. Jacketed Hardcover HERE.

THE ECCENTRIC NEWSLETTER OF ALL THINGS FANTASTICAL AND ILLOGICAL

Firstly a happy (and prosperous) 2009 to all (belated I know), especially to Quentin S Crisp whose blog at:

http://my.opera.com/quentinscrisp/blog/
provides entertainment and intelligent commentary on the world of letters, politics, and just about anything else that Quentin has a bee in his bonnet about. Visit it now. Give him a high five.

Quentin has a new book on the way later this year: “All God’s Angel’s, Beware!” published by Ex Occidente Press. Keep a look out for it. It’s also good to relate that Quentin’s new novella, Shrike should be available any day from PS Publishing.

In this “startling novella Quentin blends delicacy with darkness and pathos with terror”. See the PS website for further details of this and their other publications:
http://store.pspublishing.co.uk/

The cities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Bristol are joining together in a collaborative reading campaign starting next month. The Lost World Read 2009 will celebrate the 150th anniversary of the birth of Arthur Conan Doyle, and the bicentenary of the birth of Charles Darwin. Thousands of free copies of Conan Doyle’s The Lost World will be distributed through libraries and schools together with a ‘quick read’ edition and a paperback comic biography on the Life of Charles Darwin. The three cities will be joined by the county of Hampshire, and the 15 Library authorities of South West England. Cover design of the free edition of the book is by Aardman Animations, featuring their most famous creations, Wallace and Gromit.

I’m none too certain of the link between Darwin and Doyle, however?

The Lost World is a classic adventure story in which a group of explorers set out on an expedition to South America to prove that deep in the jungle there is a forgotten world where dinosaurs and other prehistoric animals still survive. So perhaps it’s a refutation of Darwin’s “Origins”? Still if it gets kids reading, it’s for the good.

And while I think of it, on the subject of Doyle, the BBC have started filming Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss’ Sherlock Holmes script. It’s a one off, but if well received (according to my sources) a series will follow. Holmes and Watson are played by Benedict Cumberbatch and Martin Freeman, while Rupert Graves fills the role of Lestrade. It’s all being filmed in Wales (just like Dr Who) so don’t be surprised if you catch sight of the Tardis in some of those background shots or the odd Dalek rolling by (only kidding).

I’m currently reading Nowhere near Milkwood. I’ve particularly enjoyed the Taller Stories set in an “odd pub with a stranger set of patrons”. Indeed, yes, they’re certainly that. “Although the Tall Story on Raconteur Road is a pub that doesn’t exist, takings are always high”. Here we find Hywel the landlord who “accepts payment mostly in tales”. A humorous classic and work of genius, I can only agree with Jeff VanderMeer when he said in “some alternative universe with a better sense of justice, his work( Rhys Hughes’) triumphantly parades across all bestseller lists”. Rhys deserves far greater recognition for his achievements, so everyone should rush out and purchase his latest offering: “Engelbrecht Again!” Published by Dead Letter Press, http://departmentofdeadletters.blogspot.com/ . It has an introduction by Jeff VanderMeer and artwork by Keith Minnion.

Obviously Maurice Richardson created Engelbrecht in the 1940’s and this surreal, boxing dwarf was the most renown member of the Sportsman’s Club. Rhys has written Engelbrecht’s further adventures which sees him in space, in hell, surfing the solar wind, and so much more. Inventive, ingenious, hilarious – yes, all that and more. This book is a must have, so order a copy today. Better still, order two copies and give one to a friend as a New Year’s gift. Rhys has his own blog at:

http://rhysaurus.blogspot.com/

This month: 7th January 1886 Richard Dadd died 7th January 1886. Some while ago they bunged-up a blue plaque on his old Suffolk Street, St. James’s address in London. So fame indeed. Dadd, of course, painted all those fairy paintings – you know the ones? (actually he painted an awful lot more than that, but it seems that’s what he’s best remembered for). The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke is very well known.

Dadd was considered one of the most promising artists of his generation, universally loved “for his gentleness, intelligence and cheerful good nature”. Unfortunately he became delusional and murdered his father with a razor. Consequently he spent the rest of his life in the mad-house, firstly in ‘Bedlam’ subsequently in ‘Broadmoor’. No one is sure exactly what Dadd was suffering from: paranoia is one claim, Schizophrenia another, while bipolar disorder limps home as a weak third. At the time it was thought he might be suffering from sunstroke (he’d just returned from a visit to Egypt), but it could just have easily been his boring diet of boiled eggs and ale (three times daily). Angela Carter wrote Come unto these Yellow Sands: four radio plays about Dadd, while The Fairy Feller’s Master-Stroke provided inspiration to Freddie Mercury and Queen for the rock song of that name.

Just while I think of it, have any of you read Selma Lagerlof’s novel “The Lowenskold Ring?” Selma won the Nobel Prize for literature back in 1909, but this novel from 1925 is a “disturbing saga of jealousy and revenge from beyond the grave”. Worth reading. My edition’s translated by Linda Schenck and published by Norvik Press. Their website: http://www.norvikpress.com/ I’ll try and give a fuller review of this work later.