The Da-Da-De-Da-Da Code by Robert Rankin

The Da-Da-De-Da-Da Code by Robert Rankin. London: Gollancz, 2007. ISBN: 978-0-57507-0-110

I picked this book up (off the new fiction shelf at my local library, per usual) because of the seemingly musical aspect to the title, and because, according to the flyleaf, the chief character is, indeed, a musician. I'm always on the lookout for fiction with a musical aspect to it, as reading such stories is one of my hobbies, so to speak.

But, I'm sorry to say that I struck out with this one. I just couldn't stomach it. Apparently Rankin is considered a master of a comic, silly style that many people find hilariously irresistible. Sorry. I found it intolerable. I couldn't make it past the first 10 pages or so. So much for Nancy Pearl's Rule of Fifty.

I found the writing style to be incredibly supercilious and smarmy. Reading it was to me like the proverbial fingernails scratching on the blackboard. Life is too short. There are too many other books out there that I want to read to force myself to read something that I found so viscerally annoying. If a blatantly comic style is your thing, ignore my advice and read this book. Otherwise, not recommended.