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Loading... Edward Trencom's Nose: A Novel of History, Dark Intrigue, and Cheese (edition 2007)by Giles Milton
Work InformationEdward Trencom's Nose: A Novel of History, Dark Intrigue, and Cheese by Giles Milton
   None No current Talk conversations about this book.   ) cspiwak | Mar 6, 2024 |  For one, very little was actually about real cheeses, and it ignored actual cheese history and availability in London, especially in the 1960s when commodity cheeses ruled and artisan cheeses were actively dying (YES, as a history and cheese geek, I will criticize this first). Even more, this is a 300-page book wherein there is almost no plot progression for 275 pages. Edward is told time and again that he'll be told the truth soon. Meanwhile, sporadic chapters detail the gruesome deaths of previous generations, and there are gratuitous descriptions of awkward sex, many of them reading like fat jokes. When things finally are revealed at the end, it doesn't feel like much of a surprise because the hints were all there early on, but Edward needed to bumble along for prolonged pages first. Many elements are left unexplained. The book seemed to go for British dry humor with magical realism, but from a strong start, it lost me as the plot itself lost its way. If it wasn't for the cheese angle, I would've stopped reading early on. I was left with the impression that this concept would've made for a great short story. (  ) ladycato | Dec 13, 2022 | i actually bought the book partly because i felt sorry for it being on the clearance rack and each week when I went to my bookstore & saw all the copies were still there, so I read the inside cover & decided to give it a go... I am really glad that i did so... (  ) SpiritedTruthSeeker | Aug 5, 2014 | SPOILER: I liked the ending and did not expect it: Edward Trencom's wife saves the day! The story is about an ordinary man with an extraordinary sense of smell who tries to discover the secret of his ancestors, who all seem to die in behalf of a mystery (they are the rightful rulers of Greece). Edward becomes more daring and interesting as the story progresses. Just as he is about to repeat the actions of his forefathers, his wife shows up and entices him back to his life as a master seller of cheese and thus probably saves his life.(Trying to follow one's destiny leads to death, frequently unpleasant, for Edward's predecessors; living in the present---enjoying one's life---is better than worrying about the past and the future. I'm reminded of Kazanzatkis saying that women are about the here and now and the real world, while men are the ones who dream of lofty ideals. I was impressed because I had thought that the stereotypical woman was "flighty" and that men were more down-to-earth.) (  ) raizel | Apr 28, 2013 |  ) devenish | Mar 24, 2013 |
 Non-fiction writer Milton’s first novel is an engaging story about an oddball man who becomes ever more interesting. Mostly fast paced, the novel lags in the middle as the author reveals the demise of every Trencom. Death, like the pre-adventure Edward Trencom, can become tedious.
Situated on London's Foster Lane, there is a quintessentially Georgian, redbrick house with a green door bearing the sign trencoms, 1662. It's the home of the Trencom family's cheese store, a generational establishment begun by Humphrey Trencom that now, 303 years later, is run by Edward Trencom. Quaint though it may seem, it bears witness to a strange occurrence of "accidents" that seem to befall every generation of the curd-loving family.... Edward Trencom has bumbled through life, relying on his trusty nose to turn the family cheese shop into the most celebratedfromagerie in England. This was no ordinary nose, but one long, aquiline, and furnishing the trademark circular bump over the bridge---the very same nose bestowed on all the Trencom men. It was extraordinary, able to discern the composition, maturity, and quality of cheese---and the Trencom noses had sniffed, whiffed, and judged the very best cheeses of the world. But on an ordinary day, Edward's world is turned upside down when he stumbles across a crate of family papers. To his horror, he discovers that nine previous generations of his family have come to sticky ends because of their noses. When he investigates---despite his grandfather's caveat never to look into the origin of his nose---Edward finds himself caught up in a Byzantine riddle to which there is no obvious answer. And like his ill-fated ancestors, he is hunted down by rival forces whose identity and purpose remain a total mystery. Trapped between the mad, the bad, and a cheese to die for, Edward Trencom's nose must make a choice---and for the last nine generations it has made the catastrophically wrong decision. Giles Milton's deliciously comic debut novel is a mouthwatering blend of Tom Sharpe and P. G. Wodehouse. From the noble Roquefort to the piquantÈpoisses, every page is permeated by the pungent odor of cheese. Praise for Giles Milton: "He has a rare ability---a talent for sifting fine pearls from faraway sands and for transmuting the merely arcane into little literary gems." ---Simon Winchester,TheBoston Globe "Milton spins a fascinating tale. . . . Exuberantly eccentric characters stride the pages." ---Time magazine onNathaniel's Nutmeg "In an exceptionally pungent, amusing, and accessible historical account, Giles Milton brings readers right into the midst of these colonists and their daunting American adventure." --- Janet Maslin,The New York Times, onBig Chief Elizabeth No library descriptions found. 
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 Google Books — Loading...GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)823.92Literature English & Old English literatures English fiction Modern Period 2000-LC ClassificationRatingAverage: (3.21)
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