A review by cheryl6of8
The Mystery of the Sardine by Stefan Themerson

2.0

I am not sure why I am giving this book 2 stars when I finished it thinking that I would like to have the time I spent reading it back, please. I guess because I think the author probably had a point that I missed and because it seems like serious literature in a way, much as Joyce's Ulysses did to those who managed to read it.

I was misled by the word "mystery" in the title, by the fact that the plot involves an exploding poodle, and by the snippet from The Guardian's review on the front comparing the author to Lewis Carroll. I expected a weird pseudo-mystery with at leasta an answer or two that made sense at the end -- like the answer to the question: What was the point?! I described this book to a friend as Kafkaesque, and I am sure Kafka would have enjoyed it, but at least when I finish reading something by Kafka I understand what he was getting at. All I can determine from pondering this book is that the entire point was that there is no point. Aargh!

A friend has this book on her wishlist, so I will send it to her, by I will include this review as a warning because it may not be what she was expecting.