Any Other fans of Robert Rankin around?

[Thor Damar]

Hello and good day to you all.

I was just wondering if there where any other fans of that past, present and future master of Far Fetched Fiction Mr Robert Rankin?

He is known as the bard of Brentford, the English Spike Milligan and often favors the now legendary running jokes. Not to mention the weird and wonderful plots and happenings.

Much more about the lad himself can be read at at the Fansite Sproutlore http://www.sproutlore.com/

If you have not partaken of Rankin's tall tales of the world we through we knew then you would be missing out on one of the finest humorists ever to have walked the earth.

[Worf2DS9]

I've enjoyed his books for sure. I think my fave is still The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse. The follow-up, The Toyminator, was fun too.

[TheGodBen]

I read all of them about five years ago and loved them, but then I stopped and haven't read any of his books after Knees Up Mother Earth. They are not the most intellectually stimulating books, but they are the closest I can get to hallucinating through legal means.

I was just watching a documentary about Terry Pratchett, and I think I saw one of his fans getting him to sign a Robert Rankin novel.

[Thor Damar]

GodBen wrote:

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I read all of them about five years ago and loved them, but then I stopped and haven't read any of his books after Knees Up Mother Earth. They are not the most intellectually stimulating books, but they are the closest I can get to hallucinating through legal means.

I was just watching a documentary about Terry Pratchett, and I think I saw one of his fans getting him to sign a Robert Rankin novel.

^ Ouch!

I understand that there is a certain rivalry between Mr Pratchett and Mr Rankin but I have always enjoyed both their works especially now that we're not going to get any other Discworld Novels anymore.

It's funny that you should mention "Knees up mother Earth" because I'm currently rereading that particular novel (and enjoying it greatly).

I agree that Rankin's books are not the most Intellectual of reads but then that's not why I read them. I like the Metafiction and the general otherworldly sense of the Novels especially in the now legendary Bentford Trilogy.

Not to mention the running gags...

[Thor Damar]

Worf2DS9 wrote:

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I've enjoyed his books for sure. I think my fave is still The Hollow Chocolate Bunnies of the Apocalypse. The follow-up, The Toyminator, was fun too.

I have to say that those two are my least favorite of his works, a rare miss by the great one.

Snuff Fiction, Dance of the Voodoo Handbag and the Brentford Trilogy are the the finest examples of far-fetched fiction around. (Also any thing with Hugo Rune involved is a sheer joy to read)

[Hugo Rune]

See my user name...??


Hugo - Detective extraordinaire

[TheGodBen]

Thor Damar wrote:

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I understand that there is a certain rivalry between Mr Pratchett and Mr Rankin but I have always enjoyed both their works especially now that we're not going to get any other Discworld Novels anymore.

I don't think Pratchett has given up writing yet, Unseen Academicals should be out this year. He still has plans for one last Tiffany Aching novel and I believe there is going to be another novel about Moist von Lipwig called Raising Taxes. Hopefully we'll get a few more years out of him yet.

As for Rankin, my favourite novel was Sprout Mask Replica, at least I think that was the one. It has been a while since I read it, but I believe that is the one where the main character dies half way through the book, at the end the world is destroyed in a mad LSD trip, and the final pages reveals it was all part of a sinister plot by sprouts. I broke my mind reading that book.

[Thor Damar]

GodBen wrote:

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I don't think Pratchett has given up writing yet, Unseen Academicals should be out this year. He still has plans for one last Tiffany Aching novel and I believe there is going to be another novel about Moist von Lipwig called Raising Taxes. Hopefully we'll get a few more years out of him yet.

As for Rankin, my favourite novel was Sprout Mask Replica, at least I think that was the one. It has been a while since I read it, but I believe that is the one where the main character dies half way through the book, at the end the world is destroyed in a mad LSD trip, and the final pages reveals it was all part of a sinister plot by sprouts. I broke my mind reading that book.

Yep, that's the book. Actually that's a standard mindbending type plot that Rankin uses in almost all his novels. Try the Garden of Unearthly Delights for a great example of this.

The first Rankin I read was " Nostradamus ate my Hamster" that really weirded me out!

[TheGodBen]

Thor Damar wrote:

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The first Rankin I read was " Nostradamus ate my Hamster" that really weirded me out!

That's the first one I read too!

Ernest Fudgepacker is one of the rare guys who can always make me cry - Terry Pratchett®

I loved that bit. It convinced me to read the rest, and most of them were very amusing.