It isn't often that I come across a new writer who is able to wield the
level of savage wit that I found in 'A Dog Eat Dog-Food World', and I
consider my discovery of Chandrasekaran one of the really happy
accidents of 2015.
With the piercing observation of the true writer, Chandrasekaran homes in on every ridiculous feature of our consumer culture. Caricature is not at all easy to do well; it is very difficult indeed to avoid overdoing it and descending into gross farce. It calls for great delicacy and precision in the writer, and in this case the call is not made in vain. Mr Chandrasekaran has, I believe, spent most of his working life in the world of industry and commerce, but one can only see that as the loss of the literary world, and hope that the loss will soon be remedied by more excellent books. If I had to compare this book to the work of an established writer, I should choose Evelyn Waugh, and the comparison is not made lightly.
Anyone who has worked in the corporate world, unless indeed he is one of those who have succumbed to the corporate myth to such an extent that his mind has been purged of all humour, is bound to giggle with delight all the way through this riotously funny book. It probably ought to carry a warning that it should not be read on public transport.
At the same time, while entertaining the reader to the point where asthmatic readers would do well to have their medication at hand, the book actually lays out the principles of marketing as it works in today's society in a very precise and understandable way. Humour aside, it could be used as a first-year textbook for marketing students. If only I had had this book at the time I was hired to head up a marketing department, I might not have been ignominiously fired after three months. One doesn't often see such a combination of sheer entertainment and useful information.
I will be watching this writer's career with great interest.
With the piercing observation of the true writer, Chandrasekaran homes in on every ridiculous feature of our consumer culture. Caricature is not at all easy to do well; it is very difficult indeed to avoid overdoing it and descending into gross farce. It calls for great delicacy and precision in the writer, and in this case the call is not made in vain. Mr Chandrasekaran has, I believe, spent most of his working life in the world of industry and commerce, but one can only see that as the loss of the literary world, and hope that the loss will soon be remedied by more excellent books. If I had to compare this book to the work of an established writer, I should choose Evelyn Waugh, and the comparison is not made lightly.
Anyone who has worked in the corporate world, unless indeed he is one of those who have succumbed to the corporate myth to such an extent that his mind has been purged of all humour, is bound to giggle with delight all the way through this riotously funny book. It probably ought to carry a warning that it should not be read on public transport.
At the same time, while entertaining the reader to the point where asthmatic readers would do well to have their medication at hand, the book actually lays out the principles of marketing as it works in today's society in a very precise and understandable way. Humour aside, it could be used as a first-year textbook for marketing students. If only I had had this book at the time I was hired to head up a marketing department, I might not have been ignominiously fired after three months. One doesn't often see such a combination of sheer entertainment and useful information.
I will be watching this writer's career with great interest.
A Dog Eat Dog-Food World is available on AMAZON.
That is the sort of review that any debut author dreams of. Thanks, Tabitha
ReplyDeleteThanks for the review, Tabitha! :)
ReplyDelete