Author:Terry Pratchett
A brand new edition of a Terry Pratchett classic – set in Victorian London, and starring cunning but kind Dodger, as he sets off on a whirlwind adventure through the city streets
THE SEWER IS DODGER’S WORLD . . .
He hunts treasure there – coins and jewels lost in the dark and dirty drains. It’s a good life, if you don’t mind getting your hands (and arms and feet and face) dirty.
But one night, Dodger helps a young woman flee two ruffians. Now, a street urchin dressed as a gentleman, he must discover the secret behind her escape.
Along the way he’ll befriend Charles Dickens, outwit Sweeny Todd and reach the giddy heights of Victorian society.
Dodger may be living in the gutter, but he’s heading for the stars . . .
Here, once again, is the mark of a great writer . . . we are captivated by ingenious word-building on every page . . . As Dodger's triumphant path ultimately brings him honour from the very highest rank of society, we cannot help but cheer not only for his success, but also for the success of this ebullient, funny and delightful novel.
—— GuardianWonderful.
—— Daily MailDodger feels fresh, vibrant and full of energy, a triumph that should be celebrated as yet another glorious gift from Narrativia.
—— SFX[A] superb novel . . . full of eccentric characters and carefully detailed London scenes, the tale embodies both Dickens's love for the common man and a fierce desire for social justice.
—— Publishers WeeklyIt's a masterwork from a treasure and hero of a writer, and it will delight you.
—— Cory DoctorowHistorical fiction in the hands of the inimitable Sir Terry brings the sights and the smells (most certainly the smells) of Old London wonderfully to life . . . Unexpected, drily funny and full of the pathos and wonder of life: Don't miss it.
—— Kirkus ReviewsInterwoven with historical figures such as Charles Dickens, Robert Peel and Disraeli, Dodger is convincing proof of [Pratchett's] still galloping imagination.
—— Daily TelegraphMasterly and entertaining
—— Nicolette Jones , The Sunday TimesDodger is a book filled with kindness and wisdom. The reason I feel the need to point this out is that it is so rare. The story practically oozes kindness.
—— Ann Giles , BookwitchDodger is a hero who Dickens would love . . . You can't help loving Dodger as he ducks, dives, falls in love and rises in the Victorian world. This is a hero I can't wait to meet again.
—— Amanda Craig , The TimesMuch as I love the Discworld series I also enjoy it when Terry Pratchett takes a break and gives his readers something else . . . Pratchett has the ambience of 1840s London spot on
—— Rachel Hyde , www.myshelf.comFine plot, excellent characters, and fun to read.
—— Irish Inn Book Club blogDodger is an amazing book . . . It creates a great display of historical London, contrasting the above ground cleanliness against the below ground filthy and often-times rotten sewers. Add in a lively set of support characters, funny dialogue, great action, and finish it all off with Dodger, one of the most lovable characters that I have read about.
—— Fantasybookreview.co.ukCompulsively readable
—— Washington PostEscape into Pratchett’s humorous and mysterious world and follow Dodger’s infamous trail through a tale where history and fantasy are entwined.
—— Independent School Parent MagazineTerry Pratchett fans should not miss Dodger, his sassy take on Oliver Twist
—— The Sunday TimesA rollicking good yarn
—— Magpies MagazineDodger’s descriptions of the capital, from its slums and sewers to the homes of the middle classes and the bolt holes of the elite, paint a vivid, immersive picture. The attention to detail in both the break-neck storytelling and historical veracity are mightily impressive . . . characters remain as compelling and three dimensional as ever . . . Dodger feels fresh, vibrant and full of energy, a triumph that should be celebrated as yet another glorious gift from Narrativia.
—— SFXAdam, an eerily ambiguous presence throughout, proves a highly effective conduit for McEwan to channel all sorts of interesting questions concerning sexual consent, the burden of knowledge, the collapse of the borders between public and private and whether humans or machines are better equipped to behave ethically.
—— MetroMachines Like Me is ultimately about the age-old question of what makes people human. The reader is left baffled and beguiled.
—— EconomistMcEwan gives the whole subject of artificial intelligence a thorough and fascinating examination… a rich and thought-provoking read.
—— James Walton , Reader's DigestGripping.
—— Jude Cook , iIn [Machines Like Me], McEwan has taken his creativity into a subversive alternative 1980s London… the young couple at the centre of McEwan’s story find out the danger in inventing things beyond our control.
—— Rebecca Thomas , BBC NewsMachines Like Me feels like a novel about empathy, and the artificial limits we set on it – by race, by gender, by geographical location – so that we can sleep at night in a world of cruelty and horror.
—— Helen Lewis , New StatesmanMachines Like Me is deeply intriguing, a little unnerving and quite captivating… [it] will leave you questioning, and imagining how our not too distant future might look.
—— UK Press SyndicationIan McEwan is one of our most venerated living writers… [in Machines Like Me] McEwan shrewdly touches upon the intricacies of artificial intelligence.
—— Rabeea Saleem , Irish TimesMcEwan’s prose is, as expected, nuanced, thoughtful and beguiling.
—— Ella Walker , Eastern Daily PressIt wasn’t going to be long before [McEwan] swooped upon the ethical conundrums of artificial intelligence… Wonderful… [McEwan] pose[s] all sorts of questions about humanity.
—— Suzi Feay , Tablet, *Novel of the Week*Machines Like Me is elegantly constructed, the sentences are consistently lovely, and the character dynamics…compelling.
—— News PuddleMcEwan knows how to fashion a twisty and pacy narrative, to keep us alive to the possibility that what we’re reading…is not all that it seems.
—— Alex Clark , Oldie, *Nook of the Month*McEwan muses on love, empathy and the morality and ethics of artificial intelligence… very good.
—— Richard Dismore , Daily Mirror, *Book of the Month*An important literary contribution to the AI debate, one of the great questions of our time.
—— Country and TownhousePrecisely rendered and well observed… [McEwan] neatly delineates humanity’s remorseless self-demotion from the centre of the universe to flotsam.
—— Lionel Shriver , Standpoint[An] undeniably another excellent novel from McEwan, who demonstrates that he can conjure up challenging characters, witty dialogue and moral ambiguity when dealing with sex robots just as brilliantly as he does on literary turf.
—— Hilary Lamb , Institution of Engineering and TechnologyDexterous, utterly gripping and intensely thought-provoking.
—— attitude, *Book of the Month*Deeply unnerving… What starts out as a darkly funny ménage à trois becomes an unsettling examination of the human condition. Bold, clever.
—— Laura Powell , Sunday TelegraphThe latest novel from my favourite author tackles the subjects of artificial intelligence and what it is to be human. He does this in a surprising, original way, and Adam, the strong, seductive “robot”, is a character that will haunt me for a long time.
—— Victoria Hislop , The Week[This] new, gripping, beautifully written and constructed, disturbing, and provocative novel…is a thrilling read… the chilling conclusions that hyper-rationalism can come to are brilliantly described.
—— Roger Jones , BJGPMcEwan maintains his status as a master of fiction.
—— Maria Crawford , Financial Times, *Summer Reads of 2019*A new collection of stories that explores the complex - and often darkly funny - connections between gender, sex, and power across genres.
—— The Week, *Summer reads of 2019*Ian McEwan’s sublimely playful new novel transports you back to the Eighties but with some major changes, including eerily life-like robots… Dark and slyly funny, it’ll also give your brain a workout.
—— Neil Armstrong and Hephizbah Anderson , Mail on Sunday, *Summer Reads of 2019*