The absurd, the grotesque, Thomas Clapperton, hypochondriac, egomaniac, Scotsman, misanthrope, misogynist, menagerie keeper … has a date.
His romantic rendezvous is with the girl across the road, Trudy Otter. Although Trudy only has an incestuous eye for her brother, Rex.
The most dysfunctional of all beings rub against each other in the desperate search for human happiness in John Herdman's gothic miserene, Clapperton.
Also in this volume, The Devil and Dr Tuberose. The equally unbalanced Dr Marcus Tuberose battles legless infantry of demons until he finally confronts the devil himself, embodied in the family dog of his blessed colleagues. A tale of transgressive madness from the master of the Scottish Gothic, John Herdman.
Two tales of the mania, derangement and the psychopathy peculiar to the Caledonian Antisyzygy. Brace yourself for hilarity, ridicule and an exquisite dose of oddity.
ALSO IN THIS EDITION: Complete Herdman Bibliography, spanning six decades of creative output.
«Perhaps in the very combination of opposites — what either of the two Thomases, of Norwich and Cromarty, might have been willing to call “the Caledonian antisyzygy” — we have a reflection of the contrasts which the Scot shows at every turn… we need not be surprised to find that in their literature the Scots present two aspects which appear contradictory. Oxymoron was ever the bravest figure, and we must not forget that disorderly order is order after all.” G. GREGORY SMITH, Scottish Literature: Character and Influence
“I was struck by Herdman's wry, philosophical bent, his acute sense of place and perception and anguish at the plight of the human condition…. But despite the pitch darkness and seriousness of his themes, Herdman is an appealing writer, with a clipped, laconic and lugubrious wit, capable of swiftly etching a scene …. goodness knows why John Herdman is not much better known than he is.” Alan Taylor, The Sunday Herald
“Herdman's writing is a feat of great wit and invention.” Scotland on Sunday
“It is a tribute to Herdman's writing that he evokes so many writers without ever seeming to imitate them .. the quality of Herdman's fantastic imaginings commands respect.” Christopher Whyte
“John Herdman skilfully treads a vertiginous edge between satiric comedy and high seriousness.” The Scotsman