Back to his modern satires, for his last novel The First Casualty was historical, very special and unusual. With this one he returns to the familiar social territory of Dead Famous and Past Mortem. It centres around the TV Pop Idol shows and the backbiting celebrity world surrounding it. Some quirky characters and amusing ideas, but not his best, although very clever, and as a Ben Elton fan it’s a ‘must read’.
Similar this month: None but try Kevin Sampson.
Comparison: Stephen Fry, Rupert Morgan, Christopher Buckley.
| Primary Genre | Humorous Fiction |
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Crazed, no talent fame junkies…And that’s just the judges.
Chart Throb.The ultimate pop quest. Ninety-five thousand hopefuls. Three judges. Just one winner. And that’s Calvin Simms, the genius behind the show.
Calvin always wins because Calvin writes the rules. But this year, as he sits in judgement upon the Mingers, Clingers and Blingers whom he has pre-selected in his carefully scripted ‘search’ for a star, he has no idea that the rules are changing. The ‘real’ is about to be put back into ‘reality’ television and Calvin and his fellow judges are about to become ex-factors themselves.
Ben Elton, author of Popcorn and Dead Famous, returns to blistering comic satire with a savagely hilarious deconstruction of the world of modern television talent shows.
Chart Throb. One winner. A whole bunch of losers.
Chart Throb features in the following genres: Humorous Fiction, Modern and Contemporary Fiction, eBooks of the Month, Fiction, General Fiction, Recommendations
Chart Throb is available in Paperback
Chart Throb was written by Ben Elton and published by Transworld Publishers Ltd
Chart Throb has 463 pages
£11.69