Egg Dancing by Liz Jensen

bookshelves: published-1996, paper-read, one-penny-wonder, autumn-2014, debut, mental-health, under-100-ratings, skit, amusing

Read from November 10 to 29, 2014

Description: With only a schizophrenic mother and a militantly hostile sister for backup, Hazel Sugden, food-splattered mum and queen of low self-esteem, is palpably unfit to save the future of mankind. But, when embryology, psychiatry and religion clash over the miracle designer drug Genetic Choice, the trio are propelled into action.

In memory of my beloved father,
Niels Rosenvinge Jensen.
Whose fault everything is.

Opening: ‘Expect a new world,’ said the evangelist, ‘and the Lord shall provide it.’
But he was lying as usual. The Lord provided nothing. Why should He?. I’ve worked in the holiday industry, and my theory is this: the planet God designed for us to inhabit is strictly self-catering.

Welcome to City Gridiron, somewhere cartoonish in mid 90s UK.

The Premise of Genetic Choice:

”All this drug is doing is to flush out – to deselect – the less competitive specimens, often before the woman even knows she is pregnant. Only the very highest-grade foetus will survive.”

And Channel Praise with its TV evangelists, most notably a certain Rev. Carmichael, and Christian game shows and competitions and Church-approved chart music in between.

Dark fun, fully recommended.

kakistocracy (plural kakistocracies): Government under the control of a nation’s worst or least-qualified citizens.

5* The Ninth Life of Louis Drax
4* The Rapture
4* The Uninvited
2* My Dirty Little Book of Stolen Time
TR War Crimes For The Home
4* The Paper Eater
4* Egg Dancing