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The Bloater

The brilliantly original rediscovered classic comedy of manners
By Rosemary Tonks
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Check link for latest rating. ( 877 ratings, 167 reviews)
Book Hero Magic crafted this summary to help describe this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Summary
The Bloater by Rosemary Tonks is an engaging tale set in London, capturing the amusing yet complex dynamics of love and relationships. The story revolves around a woman entangled in the eccentricities of her personal and professional life while juggling her feelings for the men surrounding her. With sharp wit and vivid portraits of character, the novel offers a unique glimpse into the absurdities of human emotions and interactions.
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Format: Paperback / softback
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Book Hero Magic created this recommendation. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! IS THIS YOUR NEXT READ?

This book may appeal to you if you enjoy exploring themes of mid-20th-century London with its unique blend of wit, insight, and commentary on relationships and the struggle for personal identity. Its distinctive writing style captures the complexities of life and love, offering a vivid portrayal of human eccentricities.

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Book Hero Magic formatted this description to make it easier to read. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! Description

A sparklingly ironic comedy of manners set in 60s London. A rediscovered classic by 'the Poet Who Disappeared'.

With a new introduction by Stewart Lee

'Should The Bloater be republished? Oh God, absolutely, it's fantastic.' - Stewart Lee

Min works at the BBC as an audio engineer, where she is struggling to replicate the sound of a heartbeat. At home, other matters of the heart are making a mockery of life as Min knows it.

Min has found herself the object of her lodger's affection. An internationally renowned opera singer she's nicknamed 'The Bloater', Min is disgusted and attracted to him in equal measure. But with a husband so invisible that she accidentally turns the lights off on him even when he's still in the room, Min can't quite bring herself to silence The Bloater's overtures.

Vain, materialistic, yet surprisingly tender, The Bloater is a sparklingly ironic comedy of manners for all flirtatious gossips who love to hate and hate to love.

Praise for The Bloater

'A wonderfully unromantic romantic comedy' - Daily Telegraph

'Uncommonly good' - Guardian

'It is the perfect aperitif, makes you feel warm and careless and much, much happier' - The Times

Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?

The Bloater is praised for its wit, originality, and sharp metaphors, offering a distinct and entertaining comedy of love. Reviews highlight its lively and atmospheric writing style, drawing comparisons to other literary greats like Muriel Spark and Beryl Bainbridge. The novel is noted for its humour, with every sentence contributing to its comedic charm.

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Book Details

INFORMATION

ISBN: 9781784877804

Publisher: Vintage Publishing

Format: Paperback / softback

Date Published: 05 May 2022

Country: United Kingdom

Imprint: Vintage Classics

Contributors:

  • Introduction by Stewart Lee

Audience: General / adult

DIMENSIONS

Spine width: 11.0mm

Width: 130.0mm

Height: 198.0mm

Weight: 131g

Pages: 176

Collections

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About the Author

Rosemary Tonks (1928-2014) was a colourful figure in the London literary scene during the 1960s. She published two poetry collections, Notes on Cafes and Bedrooms and Iliad of Broken Sentences, and six novels, from Opium Fogs to The Halt During the Chase. Tonks wrote for the Observer, The Times, New York Review of Books, Listener, New Statesman and Encounter, and presented poetry programmes for the BBC.

Also by Rosemary Tonks

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  • The Halt During the Chase
    Finally back in print, a shockingly wry and funny coming-of-age novel from the inimitable Rosemary Tonks, author of The Bloater. Brilliantly funny and brutal, this is the story of one woman's escape from the clutches of polite society, by the incredible mid-century writer who destroyed her own books. 'No matter her insistence that she just dashed them off to make...
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  • Businessmen as Lovers
    Businessmen as Lovers by Rosemary Tonks is a charming, funny, and sun-soaked novel by the author of The Bloater. Fun, witty, and sun-soaked—literary cartwheels and seaside capers from the astoundingly brilliant mid-century writer who destroyed her own books. Great friends, Mimi and Caroline, are off on holiday to a beautiful Italian island. There they find themselves part of an eccentric...
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  • The Way Out of Berkeley Square
    Another outstandingly wry and funny novel from the inimitable Rosemary Tonks, author of The Bloater. Gut-wrenching, ingenious, absolutely hilarious, this is the rediscovered story of a woman's desperate quest for freedom. 'I'm thirty, and I'm stuck' Arabella is on an increasingly desperate quest for freedom from her overbearing father and her conspicuously absent brother. But her desire for self-actualisation only...
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