Rupert Dreyfus

When I finished this book, I felt annoyed. Annoyed that it was over too soon.
You might think that thirteen short stories and two hundred and fifty odd pages would more than suffice, but damn it, I wanted more!

Dreyfus has his witty finger firmly on the pulse of the everyday rebel: the minimum wagers, the drop out punks, the lager drinking philosophers, the people who know that a simple tweak of the system could actually make everything all right…

Each story is told in first person narrative, show more and this works surprisingly well. It’s also great fun that some of the stories’ main characters are referenced in other stories, giving it an extra interlaced dimension of the Irvine Welsh manner.

Talentless boybands, a dead man’s blunt, end of the world bunkers, social media mockery, literal dickheads and gnome fetishes… you’ll find them all here.

Sure, I could pick out some stories and say they were my favourites, but it would feel wrong to do so, because every tale is a winner.

In the afterword, the author states: “There is nothing admirable about being obedient to a system that doesn’t serve you. The present system we endure day in, day out is designed to turn us against each other while a minority of people get rich off our backs, destroying the planet in the process.”

Too right mate. I already know that I’m a rebel, but I’m hoping others will read this book and realise that they are as well.

But if I had to just use six words to review this book (a la the story entitled Sentenced), I’d simply opt for:

This book is funny as f***. show less

Maxwell Bashmore is a gloriously timely comic creation. There is something in his hideousness and oblivious conceit that is of the ages. I am reminded by the writing of Rupert Dreyfus of those intelligent satirical monsters that sprang up in response to the Thatcher years. One notable comparison being the ultimate Tory grotesque, Alan B’Stard. Bashmore is more pedestrian though, and it is his facade of acceptability and absolute belief that he owns the new normal, which marks him out as at show more once a figure to be feared and pitied.

Dreyfus has spawned a horrifically funny and creepily real representation of the insanity of absolutism, here in the form of a Tory mindset run rampant to its logical excesses. The scary thing is how familiar Bashmore is, and how his sense of entitlement to move through life uncontested is the true face of modern politics. Was it ever thus? I don’t know, I wasn’t there. Bashmore is a brick wall and as this story knocks its head against him the only response is hysterical laughter. Premium Dreyfus. show less

In Spark we follow Jake, an intrepid crusader for the disenfranchised, a man who funnels his own dissatisfactions into an outpouring of pent up venom apt for a plugged in and zoned out populace.

By accident rather than design he stumbles across an idea that appeals to the untapped need of a public ready to unleash its frustrations.

Weary of soul sucking corporate office politics and a staid existence seemingly without hope, Jake takes a chance and winds up in the orbit of the Duke of the show more Dodgers Vinnie; a man who if you look amoral up in the dictionary his face would be the definition, but then he would burn the book like a Nazi. Not because he is a Nazi but just to piss off your sensibilities. We take a ride along with Jake, literally toward the end, as his attempts to voice the discontent of a neglected majority become increasingly unfocused and hurtle toward an outcome he has had barely the time to consider. As the Spark catches hold we see how Jake's ideas begin to permeate, how he is ill-prepared for his potential influence and how ravenous the appetite for change can be.

As we are left with the question of whether any type of revolution is the answer to the current mess that sits straddling the world of politics and the fallout for us so-called ordinary people, we are also faced with the predicament: if that is not the answer, what is?

Raising issues of political process, rate of change and the viability of reform in the current structure of Westminster politics Spark is a novel that takes a breakneck tour through one hacktivist's endeavours to kick some life into a stale debate, where even the voices of dissent are tied to the status quo(down, down, deeper and down). It is with painful irony and understanding that we see Jake's flaws as a reflection of those he attributes as emblematic to the politicians and prototypical bigwigs of mega business he despises, his motivations revealed as the complex response to a thwarted infatuation, the challenges of the asshole workplace and the alienation of the open city. Jake's dissatisfaction manifests in a tidal swell of unconscious compulsion and he is swept along as his justified grievances meld into a raw call to interwebbed arms. How tempting to hear that cry.

3.5 out of 5 as I felt that at times it was a little rushed, but overall I liked the pace so I've probably just contradicted myself. This book read like a movie and I was impressed by how seamlessly a sense of place was evoked. Immensely enjoyable and thought-provoking. show less

This isn’t just my favourite of Rupert Dreyfus’ books to date, nor is it one of my favourite indie books, it’s simply one of my favourite books, period. If I was going to include the best quotes from Prezident Scumbag! in this review, I’d be posting 90% of the novella’s content, so I’ll let you discover that for yourselves.

First off, this short tale about British crusty punk band Sick Bastard travelling to the U.S. to perform a protest song about America’s new cunt of a show more president is funny as fuck. Every other page, I found myself literally laughing out loud like a stoned crazed hyena.

Secondly, Dreyfus manages to write so succinctly and poignantly about the fucked up state of the modern world and what we need to do to improve it, through simple things like being kind and employing anarchism (actual anarchism, not the media lie where anarchy is synonymous with violence and destruction), that this book is way deeper than it’s cartoonish facade may first seem.

It’s easy to lambaste the modern political world, and it’s easy to make jokes about the likes of Trump, but Dreyfus’ criticism of such things is on anther level – because 1) He knows what he’s talking about, and it’s easy to see that the author is well versed in anarchist literature and the like, and 2) He really, deeply fucking cares about the state of the world and wants to make a change. This isn’t just political satire for the sake of it – this is a work of fiction that has arisen from the author’s own heartfelt despair about the austerity-driven, big-business, odds-stacked-against-us, global political landscape. It needs sorting out, and it could well be the likes of Sick Bastard that actually make the change happen in the real world.

Having read all of Dreyfus’ previous works, I’m also happy to say that his writing just keeps getting better and better. I adored his debut novel ‘Spark’ and the short stories follow-up ‘The Rebel’s Sketchbook’, as well as his other two subsequent freebie shorts, but with each one, I can see the author honing his craft: The satire has been improved, where the balance of comedy and heavy issues are perfectly spliced together. The style of writing has improved, where northern English slang has been finely tuned – and is slightly reminiscent of Irvine Welsh’s thick-Scottish prose (and Dreyfus’ works are also reminiscent of Welsh in that characters from his previous books make guest appearances), and the comedy has also improved; Drefyus’ works have just gotten funnier and funnier.

Yeah, I’m ‘online mates’ with Rupert, so maybe you’ll think I’m biased in my opinion, but authors like him have only become part of my circle because I dig the writing so much. I feel like I want to literally shout from the rooftops about Rupert’s books, because they’re not just incredibly original, funny and brilliant – they’re also very much needed. So read Prezident Scumbag!, or I’ll lamp ya one geez. show less