Not A Good Read

The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks

This will be the last 'not a good read'. I have decided to take the advice of some of my commenters and let my instinct guide me, if I'm not gripped by the plot early on, or if I dislike the characters, or, like this one, am repulsed by the content then I will give up. I fall into the category of optimistic readers, the ones who soldier on thinking, 'surely it must get better, this is a good experienced writer, it has to get better', but as I have found out that isn't always the case.

Well I'm saying DO NOT read The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks. I was so pleased to be done with this disturbing, horrible book.

Frank is sixteen years old and severely damaged. He lives with his father near a small village on an island in Scotland. Frank’s father is strange, weak, and pedantic to say the least. Not only does he know the measurements of every wall floor and ceiling in the house he also knows the measurements and capacities of every item of furniture, every vessel, and, well everything. He is the only real influence Frank has known in his life. I can't remember what happened to his mother, probably left them, having had a premonition of the future - sensible woman.

Frank spends his days exploring the island, building dams, blowing things up, and tending his sacrifice poles and his wasp factory. In a bizarre kind of way it’s the kind of life the famous five enjoyed, without the killing of small animals, blowing things up, and of course the murders, three of them. I think the wasp factory was Frank’s way of creating not only a controlled orderly environment, but also one that tells him what to do, so that he can justify his actions. Like the murders he committed, he justifies each one into a tidy acceptable conclusion. Poor little Esmeralda’s nightmare stayed with me for days.

Frank has an older brother Eric who is even more damaged and has escaped from a mental institution. Given the dreadful thing that happened to a very young Frank I would have thought that he would be the cruel sadist torturing dogs, not Eric. I thought the reason given for Eric doing so was weak. 

I have only read one other novel by Iain Banks, “Complicity”, which was very good. The Wasp Factory has been described as a masterpiece, well I’m not an academic or well versed on giving reviews, but masterpiece was not the first word that popped into my mind. Three words came to mind – waste of time. Why finish it then? Well, I had been told it had a good twist at the end, which was shocking, so I ploughed on.  But eventually I was speed reading through the achingly monotonous, repetitive narrative of Frank’s daily jaunts over the dunes.

You know when someone says "Don't do this" it's tempting to do it just to see, but ........ should you decide to read it I accept no responsibility for any distress it may cause.  Just don't read it, it's horrible.