Detailed plot synopsis reviews of Salmon Fishing In The Yemen Ewan McGregor plays a fisheries expert, while Emily Blunt plays a business consultant and both are thrown into a unique job assignment that sends them from London to Yemen under the orders of a very rich and enigmatic sheik. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : When he is asked to become involved in a project to create a salmon river in the highlands of the Yemen, fisheries scientist Dr Alfred Jones rejects the idea as absurd. If it launches into an explanation of how the writer’s marriage is going wrong, complete with real-time dialogue exchanges, then I can’t help noticing that’s just not how business correspondence works. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Enter your email address to follow this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Last modified 13/02/2020, Your email address will not be published. Author Paul Torday makes his debut with this clever absurdist novel. Synopsis. They often have something to hide. Likewise with interview responses. Learn why I think the film adaptation of "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" is better than the book! Fill in your details below or click an icon to log in: You are commenting using your WordPress.com account. Queen’s speech an insult to most Britains, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen – Book Review, Why you should consider joining the National Secular Society, Book Review – ‘You Beneath Your Skin’ by Damyanti Biswas, Pandemic of Lunacy – Why we could be getting it wrong on Covid-19. Sorry, your blog cannot share posts by email. Based on the best-selling book Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday. But then, I’ve read so-called ‘comedy novels’ in the past without realising what I was reading was intended to be comedy until I’d almost finished. Coming back (eventually) to the comedy value; I would say the book is rather more mildly amusing than full-on comedy. I’ve never seen them chatty. Change ), You are commenting using your Twitter account. The story is slightly ridiculous at times, but that’s because the book is a comedy, and the story is played for comedy value (I’ll come back to that later). I’m quite sure that if Paul Torday had wanted, he could have written it as a fully credible serious piece. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen Critics Consensus Quirky and a little reserved, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is nonetheless a charming little romantic drama sold by some strong central performances. To foster goodwill, the sheik would like to introduce salmon fishing to Yemen--the same Yemen that is largely a desert- … Amusing, engaging, interesting narrative, but narrative all the same. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : HoughtonDr. I’ve seen high-profile characters being grilled by commons select committees. Summary; Film adaptation; See also; References; External links; Torday was 59 when the book was published. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday | Book Review, Top 10 In Five Years Quotes by Rebecca Serle from the Book, The Sunday Philosophy Club by Alexander McCall Smith | Book Review, A Tale for the Time Being by Ruth Ozeki | Book Review, Best Shakeel Azmi Poetry in Hindi that Everyone Must Read, A Song for Issy Bradley by Carys Bray | Book Review, Make your Book Blog Look Pretty with these FREE Blogspot Templates, Zakir Khan Poetry, Poem and Shayari All at one Place, Best Jaun Eliya Poetry – 22 John Elia Shayari You Must Read, All Best WordPress Plugins for Book Bloggers, 35+ Book Blog Post Ideas that will bring Visitors. More and more I see authors shackling themselves (or are they having it forced upon them by publishers?) ( Log Out /  ( Log Out /  Salmon Fishing in the Yemen ( 2011) Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. I followed the story as it progressed, and I wanted to know how it would end. Final Note: The book is published by Phoenix, who are (and I quote) ‘An Hachette Livre UK Company’ The fact that a publisher thinks it’s correct to put ‘an’ before a word beginning with ‘H’ tells you everything there is to know about what’s wrong with the publishing industry today! This is the story of Dr Alfred Jones, a fisheries scientist - for whom diary-notable events include the acquisition of a new electric toothbrush and g… So Harriet, a woman who works for the company that look after his many estates, enlists the help of fisheries expert Dr. Alfred Jones to plan the project and make it work. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is the first of British author Paul Torday's six novels to date. So if you haven’t already read it, I would recommend the book. It’s true now, and it will have been true in 2007, when Salmon Fishing in the Yemen was first released. Although, at first glance, neither of these conceits sound particularly exciting. Not only the plot of the book (as you can understand from the title) is odd, the way Paul Tordy tells this funny story is itself peculiar. But the proposal catches the eye of several senior British politicians. Change ), You are commenting using your Facebook account. And the remarkable thing is that a book about so deeply serious a … Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is the story of an extremely wealthy Sheikh who enjoys Salmon fishing in his Scottish home so much, he wants to introduce the sport back home in the Yemen. What didn’t work so well for me was the conceit of telling the story from the perspective of the main characters through their letters and emails, through their responses to questions while being interviewed, and in the case of the protagonist, through his diary entries. Written when he was 59 years old at the end of a successful business careeer, the book reportedly allowed him to write about what he knows best (as every teacher urges in Creative Writing 101). I managed to put my difficulty with the format to the back of my mind, and I did enjoy the book, although there were a few times when it became  bit tedious (such as the extracts from the Prime Minister’s Press Secretary’s unpublished memoirs). Compare book prices from over 100,000 booksellers. Your email address will not be published. ( Log Out /  Ewan McGregor, Emily Blunt and Kristin Scott Thomas star in this romantic drama from the director of The Cider House Rules and the writer of Slumdog Millionaire, about an enthusiastic sheikh dedicated to the unlikely plan of bringing British salmon to Yemen. They ask; ‘Which world comes out with most credit, do you think?’ There is a growing strand of mysticism as the book progresses, but though the conflict between different outlooks and lifestyles is addressed, it isn’t pushed too hard – the author leaves the reader to think about it themselves. The first is the bizarre subject matter (salmon fishing in the Yemen?!) It is based on his extensive experiences of industry and government, as well as his personal interests in salmon fishing and the Middle East. Post was not sent - check your email addresses! This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. A lot of them do seem to read like the screenplay of a very weak sit-com. Enjoyed your review, the book I did not enjoy. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : HoughtonDr. The Guardian described the book at the time as "lampooning the … The book tells of the heroic efforts to bring one man's dream to fruition. It could have been a very short story, but in fact it made for a rather engaging novel. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : Dr. Alfred Jones is a henpecked, slightly pompous middle-aged scientist at the National Centre for Fisheries Excellence in London when he is approached by a mysterious sheikh about an outlandish plan to introduce the sport of salmon fishing into the Yemen. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is the first of British author Paul Torday's six novels to date. So Paul Torday's debut novel is about an impossibility. Contents. I get so little time to read nowadays, when I do choose a book I could do with a dead cert! That said, I did enjoy SFINTY, even if the author did cheat with the format. I did enjoy the book, but it could have been so much better had it been written straight. Written when he was 59 years old at the end of a successful business careeer, the book reportedly allowed him to write about what he knows best (as every teacher urges in Creative Writing 101). Anyway, back to SFINTY. The reading group notes emphasise the contrast portrayed in the story between the secular west, and the faith-based societies of the middle east. It is based on his extensive experiences of industry and government, as well as his personal interests in salmon fishing and the Middle East. All of this did what for me is a cardinal sin for a writer of fiction – it disturbed my willingness to suspend my disbelief. Had this been followed faithfully it could have either made for an impossibly dry, tedious novel, or would have required a considerably higher and more sustained level of comedy than the book actually has (did I say I’ll come back to that later?). Find Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (9780753821787) by Torday, Paul. They’re generally guarded, cautious, nervous, indignant, untrusting. Satirical themes in the novel focus on the 2000s Labour government of Tony Blair and its foreign policy dilemmas. Fisheries scientist Dr. Alfred Jones is approached by an extravagantly wealthy sheik with a novel plan. I can’t see what the problem is with telling a story straight, without gimmicks. Paul Torday's original book (link Salmon Fishing in the Yemen) was written while New Labour were running Britain and first published in the UK in 2007. A fisheries expert is approached by a consultant to help realize a sheik's vision of bringing the sport of fly-fishing to the desert and embarks on an upstream journey of faith and fish to prove the impossible possible. Change ), You are commenting using your Google account. The … Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a debut comedy novel written by Paul Torday and published in 2007. To avoid the book being either dull, or a prolonged stand-up routine, the author had a cunning plan. I’ve seen extracts from the kind of interviews that are portrayed in the book. The synopsis below may give away important plot points. I don’t know, maybe I’m too uptight, but if an author tells me they’re giving me a piece of business correspondence, I kind of expect it to read like a piece of business correspondence. The Sheikh is keen on fishing, salmon fishing to be exact because he feels it causes people to live harmoniously with each other. In my defence, I have read some genuinely funny novels (I would recommend anything by Douglas Adams or Ben Elton). I can see what you mean. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : A middle-aged scientist working at London's National Centre for Fisheries Excellence, Dr. Alfred Jones takes on the outlandish--and ill-fated--task of introducing the sport of salmon fishing into the Yemen River at the behest of a mysterious sheikh. Based on the novel by Paul Torday. The novel begins with Harriet Chetwode-Talbot, working for a private financing company contacting Jones on behalf of Sheikh Muhammad of the Yemen. With so many books being published, it's no surprise that publishers are always on the lookout for something new - something that will make a book stand out. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (Book) : Torday, Paul : Dr. Alfred Jones is a henpecked, slightly pompous middle-aged scientist at the National Centre for Fisheries Excellence in London when he is approached by a mysterious sheikh about an outlandish plan to introduce the sport of salmon fishing into the Yemen. Paul Torday’s debut novel, Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is the absurdist tale of a downtrodden Everyman finding his voice. The book is about a project where the UK gets involved in a project that aims at introducing Atlantic salmon in the Arabic country Yemen, which is probably most known for its unfortunate role in terrorist enrolling and education as well as some less flattering involvement in the trade of rhinoceros horns used for handles on tribal knives. With so many books being published, it’s no surprise that publishers are always on the lookout  for something new – something that will make a book stand out. Sheikh Muhammad has a vision of importing the noble sport of salmon fishing to his native Yemen, and decides to throw some of his considerable fortune towards bringing it about. Torday was 59 when the book was published. Do I recommend Salmon Fishing in the Yemen? It relies on literary ‘quirkiness’ rather like A Visit From The Goon Squad by Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Egan. Paul Torday’s debut novel has not one but two characteristics that differentiate it from most other novels. Perhaps my taste in comedy is somewhat unusual. And I wonder whether authors (and readers) aren’t having this foisted upon them by publishers’ misguided craving for anything different, however ridiculous it might be. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen by Paul Torday is what you get when you follow the bizarre plot, with twist and turns, and does not listen to any writing advice. Emily Blunt interviewed in 2012 about Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. He cheated. ( Log Out /  A river that is dry for much of the year, in a desert climate. Learn why I think the film adaptation of "Salmon Fishing in the Yemen" is better than the book! Salmon Fishing in the Yemen is a debut comedy novel written by Paul Torday and published in 2007.. The story is based around a Yemeni sheik who loves salmon fishing, and enlists the (initially rather unwilling) help of a British fisheries expert to bring salmon to a river in the Yemen. The second is that there’s no conventional narrative – the story is told through letters, emails, interviews and excerpts from Hansard. Alfred Jones is a henpecked, slightly pompous middle-aged scientist at the National Centre for Fisheries Excellence in London when he is approached by a mysterious sheikh about an outlandish plan to introduce the sport of salmon fishing into the Yemen. Alfred Jones is a henpecked, slightly pompous middle-aged scientist at the National Centre for Fisheries Excellence in London when he is approached by a mysterious sheikh about an outlandish plan to introduce the sport of salmon fishing into the Yemen. Diary entries, correspondence and answers to interview questions are all just thinly disguised narrative. Two USPs in one novel can’t be bad. Required fields are marked *. Credits summary… I don’t know if that’s because my sense of comedy is lacking, or a damning indictment of the quality of comedy in so-called comedy novels. Salmon Fishing in the Yemen (novel): | | Salmon Fishing in the Yemen | | | | | ... World Heritage Encyclopedia, the aggregation of the largest online encyclopedias available, and the most definitive collection ever assembled. I had empathy with the main character, even if he is a bit dense at times. For me, the vehicle of the story (letters, emails, interviews, etc) doesn’t really work. Caught by Harlan Coben | Book Review | Accidental Death, The Most Notorious Jailbreakers by Abeer Kapoor | Short Book Review, To Skies and Waters by Sirjandeep Ubha | Book Review with Spoilers, If You Could See Me Now By Cecelia Ahern – Unique Fairy Tale, Jihadi Jane by Tabish Khair | Book Review | Inspired Fiction, Time Crawlers by Varun Sayal – Short Story Collection. I’ve never seen them go off on a ‘by-the-way’ tangent, relate a conversation (with complete word-for-word dialogue), give away personal secrets of the people they’re being asked about, tell a story they don’t absolutely have to tell, with all the descriptive ephemera of a novel. For me, one of them was more successful than the other. It's true now, and it will have been true in 2007, when Salmon Fishing in the Yemen was … Copyright for the cover of ‘Salmon Fishing in the Yemen’, in the absence of a credit within the book, presumably belongs to the publisher. Like telling their story through one day – the same day – of every year in the lives of their characters (that one didn’t work for me either). It is also about belief in the impossible, and belief itself. Change ). A visionary sheik believes his passion for the peaceful pastime of salmon fishing can enrich the lives of his people, and he dreams of bringing the sport to the not so fish-friendly desert. Learn how your comment data is processed. by attempting to write within some narrow, quirky gimmick. From the director of Chocolat and the Oscar-winning® screenwriter of Slumdog Millionaire comes the inspirational comedy Salmon Fishing in the Yemen. And I have to admit that wrapping up the story with a summary of the conclusions of a House of Commons Foreign Affairs select committee is rather cool. The Prime Minister in the book is certainly Tony Blair.

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