Still Life with Volkswagens (Hardcover)

~ (Author) "He is dreaming..." (more)
Key Phrases: metallic turquoise, other skinheads, caravan site, Charles Lederer, Fat Les, Carlton Bax (more...)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Nicholson (Everything and More) hilariously reunites the cast of characters from his first novel, Street Sleeper, saddling them with varying degrees of obsession with Volkswagens. Charles Lederer, recently deinstitutionalized former member of Parliament, hitchhikes through England in a fugue state, discovering that "wherever there's trouble, there's always a Volkswagen" and concluding, therefore, that the Bug is "quite clearly the car of the devil." Barry Osgathorpe, a Zen environmentalist loath to drive because of the pollution it causes, is propelled back into his souped-up black Beetle to search variously for Lederer, a missing Veedub collector and the cause of an epidemic of mysterious Volkswagen explosions. Phelan, a sinisterly charismatic retro-Nazi, leads a band of skinheads in a fleet of evilly customized Bugs on a demented hunt for the ultimate piece of Volkswagen memorabilia. Nicholson deftly adds more bizarre characters, all linked by their Volkswagen mania. In addition to his motley pit crew, Nicholson also crisscrosses their story lines with vignettes of famous Beetles?Bugs of Elvis, Charles Manson, Ted Bundy and, the ur-Volkswagen fan, Adolf Hitler. The novel's pile-up finale has a bit of deus ex machina to it. But so what. It's a mad, mad, mad world, and Nicholson's satiric talent has enough horsepower to make thrilling a meandering ride to nowhere in particular.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

The title of this new comic novel by the gifted British author of Hunters and Gatherers (LJ 10/1/94) is, of course, a takeoff on Tom Robbins's Still Life with Woodpecker (LJ 10/1/80), and the chapter headings are similarly full of witty allusion: "Bonfire of the Volkswagens," "A Book of the Volkswagens," "Volkswagen Descending a Staircase." Nicholson's hilarious tale of obsession, in which everyone from Adolf Hitler to Charles Manson makes a cameo appearance, features a gang of Beetle-driving skinheads and centers on one Barry Osgathorpe, a.k.a. Ishmael the Zen Road Warrior, who puts the pedal to the metal to find out who's been going around blowing up his beloved VWs. It's a wickedly funny read from beginning to end that invites comparison with the best of Robbins and both Amises. Highly recommended.?David Sowd, formerly with Stark Cty. District Lib., Canton, Ohio
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 240 pages
• Publisher: Overlook Hardcover; First American Edition edition (October 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 087951616X
• ISBN-13: 978-0879516161
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #2,104,731 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Quirky Fun, September 9, 1999

By	A. Ross (Washington, DC) - See all my reviews (TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Still Life with Volkswagens (Paperback)

Apparently this is the second Volkswagen-themed novel by this British author. I have not as yet read "Street Sleeper," so I can't tell you if this is the better of the two or not. What I can tell you is that is a mostly amusing tale of a number of Brits all bound together in one way or another by Volkswagens. The main problem is that all across England, there are Volkswagen's blowing up left and right. Who is doing and why, and how they can be stopped is the alleged plot which drives this book, but the reader is mostly along for the ride as the main characters search for meaning in their existence. I get the impression that many of the main characters appeared previously in "Street Sleeper," but how long the interval has been in unclear. It's a little tough to describe a novel which culminates in a rave/VW expo under siege by eight neo-Nazi skinheads and their delusional leader, who is questing after a holy grail comprised of a hand carved VW whose sun roof opens to reveal human bone replicas of Hitler and Eva Braun in flagrante... All I can say is that if you have a taste for the quirky, check it out.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Absurd...Funny...Original...and certainly full of life, June 19, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Still Life with Volkswagens (Paperback)

If you've never met a collector of Volkswagen beetle memor abilia, you don't have a complete grasp of the meaning of the proverb: "It takes all kinds..." Nicholson brings the reader a diverse group of Volkswagen "nuts", and with some of his characters, the quotation marks would be optional. All of his characters, from an annoyingly precocious little boy, to a millionaire who vanished, to a platoon of neo-Nazi skinheads are brought together convincingly by that odd-shaped "car of the people" in this absurd romp through our times. And Nicholson skillfully weaves his own connection to the Bug into the novel via asides to the reader which just add to one's conviction that one has entered an alternate universe. Have no fear: you will reach a satisfying ending from which you will be allowed to return to your own reality, where people drive Chryslers, Jeeps, Hondas, and 4-wheel drive pick-ups.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Geoff is fun to read, January 2, 2007

By	zarf "zarf" (port orchard, wa USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Still Life with Volkswagens (Paperback)

I purchased this title a a gift for a "bugged" friend after reading another of his books and seeing this on his back list.
It shall not disappoint.