Seventy-Two Virgins

Dear oh dear. Boris is a talented wordsmith and a man of considerable intelligence but you would not know it if you read this. Wafer thin plot built up with barely credible characters and more than a couple of stereotypes. Not really worth it unless you need some light distraction - i.e. stuck in an airport. Stick to the cerebral Boris!! Saw this book for sale in a pound shop recently - overpriced at that!!

A great rainy afternoon read. (2/2 people found this helpful)

Boris Johnson is one of those people who hide a frighteningly acute mind behind a bumbling persona, and I get the impression that he knocked this book out over a long rainy weekend. The plot is flawed, the pace slackens in places and, on reflection, this is a piece of lighter than light fluff. I can understand why BJ would resist a stronger editorial hand, but the book suffers as a result.

But, by Heaven, its funny! Boris Johnson takes huge swipes at the world and his dog, including himself, but cleverly avoids taking sides. ON the other hand, like Dave Courtney, he can dress up discomforting ideas in hilarious language and make you laugh despite yourself.

A good way to spend a rainy afternoon.

Sir Boris for PM (3/3 people found this helpful)

On the evidence of Seventy Two Virgins, Boris Johnson would make a good novelist or a good Prime Minister - he would probably have to decide which. `Flawed genius' may be a bit rich but hints at the general impression.

The American President is due to address the UK Parliament in Westminster Hall and meanwhile a serious but badly planned bomb cum kidnapping venture is under way. It's set in 2004, after 9/11 but before 7/7. Things go awry on all fronts but Johnson presents the drama with considerable tension, great humour and an astonishing political sensibility. How could this man be a Conservative MP?

The book is slow to start. The entire story takes place in under 4 hours but the build-up to the drama takes half the space without much happening. There is also a great deal of gratuitous erudition: okay, Boris, we've got the point, you're an extremely clever bloke but when you're writing a story like this, you need to move like Archer!

The kidnapping attempt, when it comes, is taken with deadly seriousness and yet has some hilarious sections as the author (relevantly) attacks some random targets: the fast food industry, bureacrats, celebrity chefs, religious fanatics, misogynists and military maniacs in no particular order. The book is worth the money for the rant about the food industry alone.

I was kept guessing as to how the book would end, but when it did it was satisfying. And was it all an improbable farrago?

I leave you with the author's last words:

-The only implausibility in this story is to imagine that (the kidnappers) could for a moment elude the police who guard the Palace of Westminster with such vigilance, tact and kindness.-

A delight (10/12 people found this helpful)

This is simply excellent. Boris Johnson's charmingly erratic personality shines through, making this book a delight to read.
But it's not laughs all the way - the subject matter is deadly serious, terrorism being something that the Western world has learnt to live with on a daily basis - and the author provides lucid, cogent and convincing arguments for questioning America's response to 9/11 and the country's treatment of terrorist suspects.
The characters are believable and convincing, and you do not need to peer too closely between the lines to discern the real identities of some of the principal players in this comedic masterpiece. The dialogue is deftly handled, descriptions are crisp and to the point, and overall the book works extremely well on several different levels.
More than a little reminiscent of Tom Sharpe at his best, this isn't laugh-out-loud funny, but you'll probably find yourself reading it with a smile on your face for most of the time.

Verbose Poppycock (7/47 people found this helpful)

the story is a tale of basic incompetence and the only thing that distinguishes the story and the author is that one had the benefit of a University education.

the story is littered with flowery language that, because the majority of the readers will not understand it, make is appear funny....'so eloquent of toxoplasmosis'...'cheese processed to the point of macrobiotic extermination' are phrases from a single paragraph of page 154.....

pickin on a topical scenario, using personal inside knowledge to describe the setting and dotting the tale with flowery language does not make for a great read...

Boris Johnson

Reader Reviews:

Codswallop with extra tripe (0/0 people found this helpful)

A great rainy afternoon read. (2/2 people found this helpful)

Sir Boris for PM (3/3 people found this helpful)

A delight (10/12 people found this helpful)

Verbose Poppycock (7/47 people found this helpful)

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