Oddly enough, I had listened to one of my tutors before when they suggested I have a read of one of Iain Sinclair's novels - I think it was my Contextual Studies lecturer, Graham - and I couldn't quite get into it, somehow. The writing was good, but there wasn't a hook, really. Nothing I could really agree with.
Opening up London Orbital, Sinclair's epic, heroic odyssey around the 100-plus miles of the M25, the hook grabbed me immediately, as he began to bash the Tories and Thatcher, something I just loved. And yet it wasn't unfounded and left-leaning like so many are - he ragged on Blair, just as much, commenting on the absolute flop that was the Millenium Dome, even before the proverbial turd opened. But by bring up the Dome, that big, shiny hubcap that barely managed to start serving a purpose in the later half of the last decade, he also draws comparisons between the use of that, and the M25.
Not only does Sinclair walk the length of the road and investigate various articles and things of interest that you'd have no chance of spotting if you were a driver, but he brings up interesting historical facts, too. For instance, how ridiculous is it that no-one -seriously - no-one knew where Margaret Thatcher's opening of the M25 actually took place? He brings a fascinating sense of context and an ability to describe his surroundings and sights to the proceedings. There's commentary on government complexes and asylums, and even the harrowing, torrid foot and mouth scandal of the 90's. A fascinating read, truly, and even better, it's funny. I can't recommend it enough, and I'm not even beyond the second chapter.
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