The True Knowledge of Ken MacLeod

This slender volume was first published in 2003, and so only contains papers on MacLeod's Fall Revolution Quartet and the trilogy Engines of Light. Although very erudite, it it not written in the sort of dense language normally associated either with Marxist theory or literary criticism, although fairly obviously, it contains both. It also has a piece by MacLeod on his friend Iain Banks (the introduction to a German edition of IMB's Consider Phlebas), and another of the papers contrasts political themes in Macleod's and Banks' work (though be aware that Banks was still alive at this point and so the comparison is incomplete).

There were matters of fact in one of the papers that I dispute - fairly straightforward ones, at that - but show more otherwise I found this book enlightening and indeed, it made me want to re-read MacLeod's Fall Revolution novels, even though I only read them within the last ten years.

Be aware that anyone reading this will not only gain insights into Ken MacLeod's first seven novels, but they will also be given something of a crash course in radical politics, mainly of the British Left, but also of libertarian thought as this is a secondary strand in MacLeod's writings. These themes have continued in his writing since the early 2000s, although never in an uncritical way. Perhaps one of the most interesting things about the novels of Ken MacLeod is that just when you think he has exhausted all the possibilities that radical Leftist politics has to offer, there will be a new book that at least touches upon, if not relies upon, another aspect of socialist thought or experience. This book will prepare readers for the depth of MacLeod's political engagement in all of his works, based on the analysis of the first seven novels. show less

Some of the material is more interesting and useful, particularly the interviews with MacLeod and the essays he has contributed to the volume. Some of the critical essays are insightful, but others are less accessible, get hung up on plot details that don't always match my recollections of the novel, or concentrate on aspects of MacLeod's writing that I was less interested in. The best of the critical writing concentrates on the politics.

http://nhw.livejournal.com/863289.html

It is too long since I have read the Fall Revolution Quartet, because most of these essays would have meant a lot more to me if I had had it nearer the top of the memory stack. Oh well, perhaps an incentive to reread them some time soon. I particularly enjoyed Adam Frisch's piece on the Engines of Light trilogy, the intriguing review of MacLeod's poetry by K.V. Bailey, and the pieces by Ken himself.