Caustic Cryptics
In these dark long winters, there’s nothing like a good book and a warm room in your local library (if you still have one). In some cases, though, whether it is a “good” book, is a matter for debate. We don’t do debate, here, in this post but you can, in the comments below.
The books below are a mix of bestselling fiction but also include two writers famous for other literary works and an infamous poet.
Cryptic Clues (Answers follow below)
1. Rapturous writing abandoned by arse (4,6)
2. Hectic video. Dan produced conspiracy (3,2,5,4)
3. Fantasy liar? Whew, hot! Of merit questionable. (4,2,3,5,4)
4. Teen fiction sounds like guilt with mixed up characters (8)
5. Disastrously let them cope with rapper. Outrage follows someone about to die, we hear (with tin ears, famously). (3,8,10)
6. Anfield memoirs reuse rot badly within robberies (3,4,7)
7. Sequel thing varies in design (3,10)
8. Best-seller novel – iffy shags freed toy (5,6,2,4)
Warning: Answers about to follow
Answers
1. Left behind (Tim LaHaye and Jerry B Jenkins). If you haven’t heard of this, this link will give you some background While alive (he died in 2016), La Haye seems to have ticked a lot of different boxes for right wing fundamentalist Americans – vehemently anti-Catholic, anti-gay and a strong believer in the Illuminati conspiracy. Jenkins who appears to have done most of the actual writing, has said, “I write the best I can. I know I’m never going to be revered as some classic writer. I don’t claim to be CS Lewis. The literary-type writers, I admire them. I wish I was smart enough to write a book that’s hard to read, you know?”
2. The da Vinci code (Dan Brown) – speaking of conspiracies.
3. Lair of the white worm (Bram Stoker) Yes, the same Bram Stoker who gave us Dracula! While this book is regularly panned, it would be unfair to blame Mr Stoker for the rise in books such as #4
4. Twilight (Stephanie Meyer). “Light wit” was a possible anagram here but undoubtedly inappropriate.
5. The Complete McGonagall (William McGonagall). We couldn’t leave out the master.
6. The Four Streets (Nadine Dorries) Who also appears in two other Lokiwit posts – one in permissive and Cryptics #3 (spoiler alert!). This may or may not be a trend.
7. The Virginians (WM Thackeray). According to Wikipedia, J. A. Sutherland called it Thackeray’s worst major novel. John Halperin called it “the worst book ever produced by a great novelist.” Jack P. Rawlins wrote that “The Virginians is a bad book — dissatisfying in the reading, acknowledged as dull and dried-up by Thackeray.
8. Fifty Shades of Grey (EL James)
Why these eight? We confess to not having read any of them but these ones do turn up in a number of lists, such as this
Do you agree or disagree or know any other great book anagrams? Then comment below. Also ,happy to answer any questions as to the solutions.
And finally, never turn down the opportunity to revisit these horrors on people you know, by making copious use of the mysterious and multi-coloured silhouettes below.