Making Nice

by Ferdinand Mount

Overview

From the bestselling author of Kiss Myself Goodbye comes a raucous, deliciously funny political satire for fans of Evelyn Waugh and Veep.

Ferdinand Mount's latest novel is a journey through the murky world of London PR firms, the back rooms of Westminster and on the campaign trail in America and Africa. Along for the ride is the hapless Dickie, lately the diplomatic correspondent for a London financial newspaper. With his wife Jane and their two daughters, Dickie finds himself bound up in an ever more alarming series of unfortunate events, revolving around the shady character of Ethel (Ethelbert), founder of the dubious public relations agency Making Nice.

Making Nice is a masterly take on the madness of contemporary society and the limitless human capacity for self-deception.

This is Ferdinand Mount at his very best.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781472992871
Publisher:	Bloomsbury USA
Publication date:	09/28/2021
Pages:	256
Product dimensions:	5.60(w) x 8.50(h) x 1.10(d)

About the Author

Ferdinand Mount is a novelist, essayist and former editor of the Times Literary Supplement from 1991 to 2002. He was previously head of the Number Ten Policy Unit under Margaret Thatcher. As a journalist, he has contributed regular columns to The Spectator, Daily Telegraph and Sunday Times. His novel Of Love and Asthma, part of a six-volume series, A Chronicle of Modern Twilight, won the Hawthornden Prize in 1992. He lives in North London with his family.

Table of Contents

1 Champing
2 Smiley Face
3 Hi-Vis
4 The Real Greek
5 Board Games
6 On Safari
7 Flo Flown
8 Jerrybuilt
9 Ghosting
10 Spinland
11 In the Cockpit
12 The Golden Jacket
13 The Locator
14 Lost and Found
Thanks

Editorial Reviews

Ferdinand Mount's exquisite writing draws you into a gorgeously horrid world of lies, where all authenticity is faked, and where the biggest deceptions are the ones we practise upon ourselves. Perhaps you recognise the place he's talking about. He exposes such cold truths with such warmth – I am in eternal awe of his writing, wherever I find it.” —Marina Hyde

“Mount's storytelling is irresistible” —Literary Review

“One of our finest prose stylists” —Daily Telegraph

“Making Nice is the funniest, shrewdest, most elegant novel I have read in years. What will Mount conjure up next?” —The Oldie

“…like all his novels…show his gifts for comedy, physical description and for capturing idiosyncratic mannerisms.” —Wall Street Journal

“...This pacey book is great fun to read.” —Sunday Times

“At Making Nice's heart is a serious lesson about the fine line between success and scandal, truth and lies.” —Chloe Ashby, The Spectator

“A razor-sharp comedy of political misfortunes.” —Literary Review

“Mr Mount has written a satire to be consumed in one sitting, a pointed critique of the modern world delivered with pluck and verve.” —The Economist

“[Mount] is very good on behavioural quirks, often evoking them with unexpected analogies… Making Nice is a comedy of manners with satirical trappings, and highly enjoyable, too.” —Nicholas Clee, Times Literary Supplement

“Seldom can a satirical novel have proved more pertinent.” —Sarah Meyrick, The Church Times

“So begins a rollicking rollercoaster ride through modern politics…showcasing Mount's pitch-perfect comic ear and a keen eye for caricature.” —Catholic Herald

“A razor-sharp political satire from the author of The Sunday Times Book of the Year Kiss Myself Goodbye… This book is exceptionally well-written… a feast of shrewd observations… the prose is often deliciously rich in description and imagery.” —Press & Journal

From the Publisher