Museum At Purgatory [Paperback]

Nick Bantock (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Harper-collins Publishers; First edition. edition (1999)
• ASIN: B0011400KO
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (16 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,556,371 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A thought provoking premise with inspiring art is a winner., October 27, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Museum at Purgatory (Hardcover)

After much anticipation for another "Nick" book, I was rewarded with this wonderfully thought-provoking novel. The whole premise of purgatory and how one travels through it is inspired. Each character comes alive as Mr. Bantock unravels their histories one by one and allows us to view their lives and their cherished possessions. The best part of this author's books is always his art and "Museum" is no exception. The art reaches far beyond collage and moves on to assemblage in a most delicious way. Mr. Bantock's constructed shrines are wonderful. I recommend this book to all current "Nick" fans and encourage all those who love alternative art to read this new book.

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A personal mythology, May 3, 2004

By 

wiredweird "wiredweird" (Earth, or somewhere nearby) - See all my reviews
(HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (TOP 500 REVIEWER)   

This review is from: The Museum at Purgatory (Byzantium Book) (Paperback)

Bantock has a wonderful style, and this book may be my favorite among the ones I've seen.

Like the Griffin and Sabine books, it has a definitely mystical side. As the name says, it's about purgatory, but not Dante's. This is a place where people have work to do, and our protagonist works as a museum keeper. That sets the scene for a series of peculiar vignettes, the kind that make just a little too much sense.

Also like G&S, there's a distinctly autobiographical sense about the story. The last section is explicitly a fictional autobiography. Somehow, though, the stories have a grounded feeling that doesn't let me believe they are pure fantasy.

As much as I like the G&S imagery, I like this better. Bantock has moved his improbable talent for assemblage and collage into 3D. He has created several series of fictional artifacts, are as complex and multifacted as his works on paper. These images, so many being photos, have a clarity that G&S sometimes lost.

This is a brief but very enjoyable book, and one worth re-reading. The pictures just get better with each reading, and the stories seem to stay fresh.

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Engaging picture book for big-brained grown-ups, December 20, 2002

By 

Scott Woods (Columbus, Ohio United States) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Museum at Purgatory (Byzantium Book) (Paperback)

Of all of Bantock's books, this is the one that has the most accessible premise and text (though "The Venetian's Wife" is nearly just as much so and even more fun to watch unfold). His books are many things at once: a mystery, a coffee table art book, a love story, a "Where's Waldo?" for grown-ups, and this book captures most of these elements (no love story for once) with ease and is a great starting place for people who might find the concept of picking up what is essentially a grown-up's picture book less daunting.

The concept of a limbo-like place for the dead to decide/uncover their ultimate fate is engaging and the narrarator - "Non" - does a fine job of carrying us along the thread of the mystery of the place and even himself...moreso in this book than in most of the others.

It isn't bantock's best book, but it is the one you might want to recommend to someone who isn't familiar with his work and might be self-conscious about being seen with a book with pictures. The art in this book isn't quite up to par with the art in his other books, and there's a more stark presentation here (lending itself fine to the museum concept, but not as much eye candy as we're accustomed to in a Bantock book), but it's still a fine book.