Grantchester Grind (Porterhouse Blue)

By Tom Sharpe

Book Overview

Though as cunning as ever, the formidable Skullion - previously head porter, now elevated to Master - is showing signs of physical frailty after his stroke. So the tricky business of appointing a new Master must start all over again. Meanwhile the College's monstrous debts refuse to go away, and a sinister American media mogul seems determined to make a television documentary on the premises, destroying part of the chapel in the process. Moreover, the widow of the previous Master is convinced that her husband was murdered, so she plants an agent in the Senior Common Room to dig up an unpleasant truth that everyone else would prefer kept under the carpet.

Faced with such continuing crises, the instinct of the true Porterhouse man is to reach for the bottle - or to fall back on the subtle and traditional Cambridge skills of blackmail and kidnap. But will those be enough?

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0099466546
• ISBN13: 9780099466543
• Release Date: January 2004
• Publisher: Arrow Books
• Length: 496 Pages
• Weight: 0.80 lbs.
• Dimensions: 7.8" x 1.1" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

Better than Porterhouse Blue

Although this book is the sequel to Porterhouse Blue, I liked it better. Not as good as Wilt or Blott on the Landscape, but still pretty good. My other favorites are Ancestral Vices and The Great Pursuit.

England's funniest writer strikes again!

Unfortunately Tom Sharpe is not the most prolific author, consequently it is exciting whenever he chooses to grace the marketplace with another offering. Grantchester Grind is a sequel to the Porterhouse series, and is yet another wickedly irreverent satire from the master.

Laugh out loud

Typical Sharpe fare-but reveals more about Sharpe himself than his usual. A Sharpe fan will find his understanding of the author considerably deepened. Henry Wilt and Commandant Van Heerden could have collaborated on this book. I was grateful for this, but some reviewers seem to be disappointed. Funnier than average. As many uncontrollable laughter moments as Indecent Exposure. Logical development of Porterhouse Blue. I will never forget how to make a Dog's Nose. Sharpe's understanding of American business practice may leave a lot to be desired, but I don't see why this bothers some people so much.

Not his best, but still a Sharpe classic!

Although not his best, Sharpe still tickles the correct ribs with this, his longest book. Porterhouse Blues was Sharpe's first venture into the academic humor that Kingsley Amiss exploited so well in Lucky Jim, and in Grantchester Grind Sharpe takes the reader deeper into the daffy world of Cambridge. For one who missed Sharpe's 10-year hiatus, Grantchester Grind and his latest book, The Midden, was a welcome return for the reigning king of British humor. Let's just hope he doesn't keep us waiting that long again for his next work.