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This month CM Lowry is talking to author Dan Sumption about Viriconium by M John Harrison in ‘This Book I Read…’
Topics covered include:
- Viriconium is actually a collection of books, now published as a single volume, of which ‘Viriconium Nights’ is Dan’s favourite. These stories tell tales of the city of Viriconium, loosely based on the historic Roman town of the same name, which represents in some ways every human settlement that has ever existed
- Dan reads a quote for us that gives us a good sense of the quasi-alternative reality and semi-mythical feel of the world that M John Harrison is creating.
- A common theme through Harrisons stories is the doomed search for escapism – a drive to find some fantastical alternate reality while missing the beauty of the world around us.
- Dan shares his favourite thing about the book – That no matter how often you re-read these stories they are never the same twice – the don’t sit still – you’ll always find some new nuance that you’ve not noticed before. Dan isn’t keen on re-reading but has always been drawn back to reading these over the course of his whole adult life. Harrisons inclusion of lots of British folklore is always something that Dan really enjoys.
- Dan shares some issues he has with the book – They are quite bleak and hero quests tend to end up in the characters just giving up. There are also very few strong female characters.
- Chris asks why people should read this book over the other million books in the world. Dan says the prose is just incredible – it is clear that M John Harrison put lots of thought into every word. Ian Banks describes Harrison as a ‘zen master of prose’. Also his naming of things is a fabulous!
- Dan suggests a few other books the reader might enjoy after reading Viriconium (see below).
- Dan and Chris chat about Dan’s publishing company Peakrill Press and some of the books and zines he is working on.
Links to things we discussed:
- 1613 Series by Eric Flint
- Michael Morecock (Author)
- Ray Bradbury (Author)
- Roger Zelazny (Author)
- JD Salenger (Author)
- Parsifal by Peter Vansittart
- Wasteland by T.S. Eliot
- Iain Banks (Author)
- Clark Ashton Smith (Author)
- Lord Dunsany (Author)
- The Gormenghast Trilogy by Mervyn Peake
- Wish I Was Here by M John Harrison
- H. E. Bates (Author)
- Katherine Mansfield (Author)
- The Infernal Desire Machines of Dr Hoffman by Angela Carter
- Spire RPG
More about Dan
- Dan on Instagram – @dansumption
- Peakrill Press Website – peakrill.com
- Peakrill Press Linktree
More about us
- Beyond Cataclysm on BlueSky – @beyondcataclysm.bsky.social
- Website – beyondcataclysm.co.uk
- Patreon – Patreon.com/beyondcataclysm
Music by CM Lowry. Editing by Dave Emmerson
