[DoctorEldritch]

@ZaidH I guess the analogy may go deeper even: same as you develop a more sophisticated palette over the years in regards to food (the more you eat, though you have no choice but to eat something), you develop a more sophisticated and critical outlook on what you read, the more you do it. In that sense, McDonald's is a starting point indeed.

I would not say heavily. It has an odd reference here and there, but mostly about things you'd know about from the movies, like what MI6 is. Humour is mostly situational and comes from a first-person narration outlook, so I'd say while the "nature" of humour is British, you do not need to know things about Britain to understand it.

[ZaidH]

@DoctorEldritch Agreed 100%


That’s good to know. I don’t know how to explain it, but apart from a few exceptions (like the Discworldbooks), I just don’t vibe that well with British humour. I really appreciate it, but it almost feels like a slog to get through sometimes. Glad to hear the book doesn’t lean too much into it.

[DoctorEldritch]

@ZaidH Hmm, that depends on what constitutes British literature humour; it means different things to different people. Personally, I do not see Discworld books as British humour. Sir Terry was British, yes, but humour in Discworld has more of a universal quality to it. British humour, to me, is something more along the lines of Three Men in a Boat or My Man Jeeves. Laundry files so far definately falls more into the "international humour" category for me.

That being said, humour is one of the more subjective areas there is, so my pondering on it may indeed apply to me alone 😅

[ZaidH]

@DoctorEldritch Yeah, that makes sense. Though I don’t know if it was Neil Gaiman’s influence, but holy moly Good Omens is the prime example of British humour for me, and I just couldn’t get into it.

I’m done reading The Stand, so now I’m on the hunt for a new book. And with your description of The Laundry Files, it’s definitely a tempting next choice. Are you done with the book?

[DoctorEldritch]

@ZaidH Good Omens yes, that one is quite British 😅 But I'd say it goes to show, Good Omens is set in Britain and intertwined with culture. Diskworld is a fantasy world, and has its own culture, far from the British one, too. There are some nods towards it here and there, like the existence of nobility and such, but those, too, are written with a more universal flair. I mean, Britain does not have a monopoly on nobility, even if British nobles do have distinct recognisable qualities to them. But again, his is me overanalysing.

I am done with 2/3 to 3/4 of it, and I'd say, so far, it is definitely worth a try. It is a bit of an acquired taste, and you need to read through the first 50 pages to really get into it, but if you do and if you like it, then I'd say you'd get an enjoyable and entertaining read.

[DoctorEldritch]

Not a comment about a book, but about the Guinness World Records book: Lara Croft made it there!