Please Kill Me (Legs McNeil, Gillian McCain)

Legs McNeil, Gillian McCain
Please Kill Me: The Uncensored Oral History of Punk



A potted history of American punk and it's origins from MC5 through to multiple death by drugs. It's all quotes stitched together to make the history giving a really good insight into the times and how the New York punk set lived. From a classic punk point of view (the UK viewpoint?) it covers Richard Hell and The Ramones but the rest is pre punk or simple rock and roll bands. I think Americans would have a different view. The Sex Pistols make an appearance along with Malcolm M but I think mainly because of Sid's descent into dope and the subsequent arrest on Nancy's death and his own death. There is a lot about the drugs and bands which may have not been as (openly?) into that scene (Talking Heads, Blondie, Devo) have less of a look in if any. The British scene is scathingly dismissed in the most part as copy cat with a few whinging about the supposedly pseudo political stance of The Clash and others. There is little about the background to British punk and their influences but I guess it's an American book of quotes from friends of the authors who lived in New York. Having said that it's got a few holes in analysis it's a damned good read with some very funny bits and getting pretty sombre by the end. And if you're looking for titillation here's the spoiler - everyone seems to have slept with everyone else whether man or woman. Apart from Bebe Buell and Johnny Thunders.

Healing Planet Earth (Edward Esko)

Edward Esko
Healing Planet Earth



A 60 page pamphlet explaining the environmental impact of our food consumption linked to the macrobiotic theory on how food affects us as individuals. Very well written although not all would agree with the conclusions and some of the links. As environmental impact was one of the main reasons I became a vegetarian plus the individual health concerns reading this makes me think I should try out the macrobiotic diet. No tomatoes though? I recommend reading this even if it may seem a little dated but remember when first written in the early 90s most environmentalists were considered loonies.

The Secret Agent (Joseph Conrad)

Joseph Conrad
The Secret Agent



I thought that this would be an intellectually challenging read but in my view it's a novel with an interesting plot but spoilt by lazy caricatures with even the plot let down by being lazily finished. Conrad seemingly dislikes anarchists and paints them all as short ugly lazy fat revolutionaries who obviously have psychological problems. The only intellectual effort was in looking up the odd long and obscure word but I stopped doing that when one on-line definition pointed out that the word was very seldom used except by Conrad. Maybe instead of thinking up obscure words the efforts should have been put into the plot development. Apart from my vocabulary challenges this was an easy read and the last two chapters sort of redeemed the book. It was a bit like reading a Hammer House of Horrors plot. Shadows of knives indeed! Maybe back when written in the early part of last century it didn't seem to be so hackneyed but other great authors managed to avoid poor plots and characters. I picked this up in a Books for Free shop (healthyplanet.org) and it was a Penguin "Modern" Classic (my quotes) printed in the mid 1950's with a 3/6 price tag. Anyone under 50 will need to look up that currency notation. Not sure I'll rush off to read his other classics even if for free...