Matt Beaumount is a genius! He writes in a truly imaginative and creative way and tells a cracking good story. Anyone who has worked in a large office should read this - you will recognise the characters!
Click here for Matt Beaumont's website

Amazon.co.uk Review
The idea of the first e-mail novel could have been a disaster but instead is a minor comic triumph thanks to Matt Beaumont's E. The novel of letters goes back to Richardson, of course, but things have moved on from Regency rape to the lethal office politics of an advertising agency. The beleaguered protagonists may appear to be concerned with pitching for the Coca-Cola account but their real problem is watching their backs: the knives are out and everyone from head honcho David Crutton downwards is well aware that their careers are on the line. Another part of Beaumont's lineage in this unputdownable novel is the This Life school of detailed interpersonal observation: no one character is allowed to assume centre stage; people screw, argue and discuss professional responsibility while the reader slowly makes his mind up about them from the information conveyed in the increasingly frantic e-mails.

Matt Beaumont, though, is primarily a sharp and witty observer of the social scene, with caustic humour that leaps out of his characters' electronic missives. And we're pitched headlong into the situation: it's impossible not to find ourselves riveted by Rachel, James, Harriet, Daniel and all the rest of Beaumont's at-the-edge characters as they strive to achieve a common goal and sink deeper and deeper in the waste matter. But did anybody ever send an e-mail like this one from Lorraine, a woman out to get her own way?:

"Two days in London and I'm in advertising. I went to a temp agency last week and they got me into this place called Miller Shanks. They did those shite ads for Kimbelle--you know, the Artist Formerly Known as Ginger Spice bungee jumping, looking like someone shoved a high voltage cable up her arse. I'm working for the CEO (posh for managing director). One of the lads thinks he's on for a shag but he looks too much like Bart Simpson (overbite, spiky hair and slightly jaundiced). Mind you, after a few Stellas he starts looking like Brad Pitt, so who knows?"

Will take this book to the Zurich Meetup at Cafe Gloria on June 9th to see if anyone wants to borrow this book, before I pass it onto Scarlet-Bea in August.

**STOP PRESS** Decided to turn this into a bookring!**

Welcome to my Bookring: E: A Novel - Matt Beaumont
Member / Location (Ring posted 9 June 2005)
:-) sun-beetle / Switzerland
:-) katcolorado / Switzerland
:-) scarletbea / Switzerland
:-) blaisezabini12 / Romania
:-) abrokenstarr / UK
:-) chelseagirl / UK
:-) Anfield / UK
:-) Teachie / UK
:-) fizzfred / USA
:-) piemunga / Australia
<-- Book is here
:-) Back to me / Switzerland

Small Print
:-) If you wish to be added to the list, please PM me with your details.
:-) You must be prepared to mail internationally.
:-) PM the next person on the list for their address, then send the book.
:-) It's not a race, but please read and send the book on as soon as you can.
:-) Please journal the book once you have received it (so we all know where it is) and again when you have read it (so we know what you thought of it!)
:-) If you're the last person on the list, the book comes back to me.

Fun to read, especially as you can see the different sides to a message and how people change it for each other in it's meaning. But for me the book was too long going on like this, I only made it to the half but had to giggle a few times...

Will continue it's journey to Kat

I took it home from the meetUp today...

Sorry, this one isn't for me... I only read the first day and my head is spinning from all the different people who are emailing crisscross wise around their office. I can't be bothered to remember who is who, this book makes me really jumpy and nervous...

RELEASE NOTES:

I will take this book to the MeetUp and pass it to ScarletBea...

Got the book from KatC. at the meet-up.

This book is amazing :)
My sister used to work in advertising, and if her agency was HALF as mad as this one, then I don't blame her for leaving, hehehe

And the e-mail style: fantastic!

EDIT: sent on monday, Sep 12, to the next in the list :)

Picked up from the post office this afternoon. Thank you Helen for organising the ring and thank you ScarletBea for mailing the book!

29 September 05: interesting idea - it was time that someone wrote a book using only e-mails:) Although this was a little bit tiring, especially in the beginning, because I didn't know the names of the characters. Some bits were also really funny - especially those related to Simon!
Oh, and I can't believe Romania got that lucky at the end of the book:)

I have pmed the next reader on the list for the address.

3 October 05: mailed today!

Arrived in the post yesterday. Thanks to Blaise for sending it and nice-cup-of-tea for sharing originally.

I read this really quickly - in less than twenty four hours. I could not put it down. It realy filled in a period of time when I had very little to do.

I've sent two pms to chelseagirl but I haven't yet had a reply. I'm not sure on what the etiquette is with waiting for a reply...

As I said in my previous entry, I really enjoyed this book, and I hope others get the same enjoyment! In the time when I was waiting for Chelseagirl's pm, my partner read it too and he found it incredibly amusing.

I had this for about a week or so just after Chelseagirl pm'ed me, so my sincerest apologies, it has been crazy at work/school (I work as a teacher) just recently and I haven't been able to get to a post office. I sent this out yesterday, should get to Chelseagirl Monday. Sorry to everyone for the hold-up.

This arrived safely today, thanks :0)

I had a copy of this ages ago but I RABCK'd it to someone as I hadn't got round to reading it - in fact, I reckon the only way i get round to reading anything these days is if it's a ring book and then I feel the pressure to read it and move it on! My own collection of 16 boxes of unread books are unlikely to get a look in :0(

Anyway, I've got a few ring books here at the mo but I'll get this read asap. Thanks!

Oops, I was sure I'd journalled this and asked for Anfield's address ... sorry I've had this so long.

I enjoyed this - it was interesting to see the way stories were convoluted as they passed from person to person, and I also loved seeing the same story told in several diffrent ways depending on who was being emailed. It took a while to figure out who was who, and the joke wore thin about halfway through, but it was a fun distraction from everyday life!

I'll pass this on to Anfield asap - again, many apologies ...

UPDATE: After several PMs disappeared into the ether and my ISO posts on BCUK went unheard, I've finally tracked down Anfield, and this will be going on the post tomorrow.

Excellent timing, just off for a lazy weekend away :-) Thank you Chelseagirl for posting and Nice-cup-of-tea for sharing.

I thought this was a very clever way of telling a story, just through emails, and as I am an email junkie myself it was right up my street. It was good, but I think it perhaps could have been even funnier, so I give it a 7. The characters were fantastically dreadful and I would rather endure torture than work with any of them - maybe David Brent as an opening in The Office!

Off to teachie next!

Thanks Maura, arrived today...looking at the cover I think it's vairy interesting!
Not quite my cup of tea. I have posted this off to fizzfred.

Yey! The book is here now. I'll get right to it and make another journal entry soon. Thanks for sending it all the way to me, Teachie.

I thought this was a pretty fun book. I left a job in advertising when I had my first child. Reading this killed any asperations of returning any time soon. :) It really did peg the people in charge. I loved the running joke of the CEO's email going to his Finnish counterpart and not where it was supposed to go. And yet he kept sending sensitive emails! It is sad how often that happens. It was pretty easy for me to guess where this was going to end up though. I don't think that is because of my experience. It could have been funnier and more original. But, I did enjoy reading it. Thanks for sharing, nice-cup-of-tea.

I'll send it to Jebbie74 as soon as I get an address.

I am so sorry for the delay. This month has gotten away from me. I finally sent this to piemunga in Australia today. (Jebbie74 already read it.) I had to send it surface mail so it won't get there for at least a month. Happy Holidays!

thank you! i received it yesterday. i have 2 bookrings in front, but i will get to it asap!

FANTASTIC! i work in a large office that is just like this! it was as though i was reading about my own life :) thanks so much for sharing this nice-cup-of-tea!

i will pm rahar109 for their address and send it on right away.

RELEASE NOTES:

posting home to nice-cup-of-tea today. i was unable to get in contact with rahar109.

happy travels little book!

E has finally made it back home! Thank you to everyone for taking part in this bookring :-)

just re-read the book and it's as funny as I remember it!