Customer Reviews

Bar None

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I thought the beer-per-chapter thing was a bit too much. It felt pushed. But, I suppose it was not that big a deal. In the end, I thought the payoff was very disappointing. I don't think this rises to any important level of post-apoc lit. Fair read, but, in the end it felt empty. Would not really recommend.

Set in a post-apocalyptic England, where basically the world has ended, Lebbon's Bar None unfolds an exquisitely layered tale of five survivors. The five eke out an existence in a stately English manor, attempting to grow food and capping off what little alcohol remains to drink. Lebbon names his chapters after various brands of beers and ales, although it's not to be cute. The names all relate to one of the characters past experiences with this brand and how their back stories eventually flesh out the book.

A stranger arrives one day, causing some paranoid curiosity among the five as they had not seen another live soul, not human anyway, in a very long time. He tells the group that there is a place, a bar where they can all be safe and where the beer never runs out. I know, this sounds like it might be a humorous plot but it's not, all eventually makes sense. The stranger calls himself Michael, but admits that's just his name for today. He meets with each of the group and gives them the same warning about getting out of the manor. With much trepidation, the group sets out on the bizarre quest, through a world they no longer recognize, to find the Holy Grail of pubs.

Bar None is a strange book that doesn't give up its secrets too easily. It's told in the first person which I've never been crazy about but Lebbon makes it work here, due in part to the main character's name never being revealed. Bar None is dark and dreary...nature has reclaimed the world quickly. At under 200 pages it's a short read, somewhat slow in parts but Lebbon manages to keep the readers attention with the quirky world he's fashioned.

I would give it an extra 1/2 star if I could.

This is post apocalyptic book about 5 strangers holed up in a pub in England. They are visited by a stranger named Michael who warns them to leave and find another pub far way in Cornwall. It's called Bar None, which is also the name of the book.

It is a not an intellectual read that will cause you to question your moral beliefs or faith. It's not a great, thought provoking toothsome book like The Road by Cormac McCarthy. It *is* an enjoyable, easy read that you can probably finish in a weekend.

I recommend that you enjoy it from your local library.

This book was terrible. The last half of the book was unorganized and not fully fleshed out.
Summary:
Drinks (beer specifically) causes memories.
(more likely, A smell can bring on a flood of memories, influence people's moods and even affect their work performance. Because the olfactory bulb is part of the brain's limbic system, an area so closely associated with memory and feeling it's sometimes called the "emotional brain," smell can call up memories and powerful responses almost instantaneously")
Then, everyone on earth died or turned into plants, so the beer drinkers need to remember the world for everyone else. Make sense? No? I didn't think so.

With more and more garbage being pushed through the bookstores these days masquerading as "best sellers," it's nice to find something worth reading. Lebbon can always be counted on to provide a good story, and this one is no exception. Like his other work, this one will stick with you for a bit after you put it down.