The Proof of My Innocence by Jonathan Coe
| The Proof of My Innocence by Jonathan Coe | |
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| Category: Thrillers | |
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Reviewer: Sue Magee
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| Summary: It's fiendishly clever and set in the seven-week period of Liz Truss's premiership. You'll never again get on a train and hear the 'see it, say it, sorted' announcement without scowling and you'll get most out of the book if you're familiar with Friends. I'm not. | |
| Buy? Maybe | Borrow? Yes |
| Pages: 352 | Date: November 2024 |
| Publisher: Viking | |
| External links: Author's website | |
| ISBN: 978-0241678411 | |
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Life after university hasn't worked out quite the way that Phyl anticipated. She's back home, living with her parents and on a zero-hours contract serving sushi to tourists at terminal 5 of Heathrow Airport. All those ideas of becoming a writer seem to have come to nothing. The situation improves when 'Uncle' Chris comes to stay and introduces Phyl to his adopted daughter, Rashida. Christopher Swann (described by some as a lefty blogger) is investigating a think tank which originated at Cambridge University in the 1980s. It plans to push the government in a more extreme direction and is ready to act.
The UK has a new prime minister. We thought nothing could be worse than Boris Johnson, but the following seven weeks would prove us wrong. Liz Truss would be worse in ways we'd never dreamed about. Chris pursues his investigation at a conference held in the Cotswolds and it's not long before there's a murder enquiry but does the solution lie in contemporary politics or a book from forty years ago?
Some books feel as though they've not quite decided upon a genre to rest in. Others handle multiple genres with aplomb. The Proof of My Innocence falls firmly in the second category. It dashes between the eighties and the current decade, as well as between political thrillers, crime and humour - and all of it's written superbly. I'd never realised quite how annoying the see it, say it, sorted announcements on trains are until I heard it whilst reading the book on four different trains in the course of a day. It seemed to be pursuing me.
I've nothing but praise for the characterisation and the plotting. Even the title can be read in many ways. The writing is exquisite, so you might wonder why I've only given four stars. It's because of the television programme, Friends. Phyl has seen every episode many times: I've never watched one, so all the many references went right over my head and this left me feeling short-changed and ignorant. If you've watched the programme - and particularly if you've enjoyed it as many people seem to have done - then you'll probably give it five stars without hesitation. I appreciated all the qualities of the book but was left feeling slightly disappointed.
I'd like to thank the publishers for sending a copy to the Bookbag.
For more state-of-the-nation satire from Coe, try Number 11.
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