Customer Reviews

The Tin Men (Flamingo)

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The Tin Men is a very early work (1965) of English playwright and author Michael Frayn (b.1933). This book is one of Frayn's fantasies of everyday life, focusing on the everyday machinations and posturings of the staff of a technical research institute, as they slam into high gear when word is received that the Queen is coming to open their new ethics department. A modern Gilbert-and-Sullivan farce ensues, as the bewildered, presumptuous, and more than a little wacky staff work within the system and against each other.

This book has a somewhat dated feel to it, representing as it does the more rigid corporate mindset of the 1950s and early 60s. But, that said, it is a funny book, in which the author's piercing commentary is every bit as funny as that of Scott Adams.

It's just so comedically dense. There's a character named Hugh Rowe who is perpetually attempting to write a novel throughout the book. This is how Frayn introduces him: "Hugh Rowe," wrote Hugh Rowe, "is a brilliant new arrival on the literary scene."

If your comedic taste aligns with books like Catch-22 or TV shows like Peep Show and Arrested Development I think you'll really love The Tin Men.