Trainspotting by Irvine Welsh.

[Eilidh]

Yeah yeah I know it's not a book I should be reading but I done it for a solo talk.
It's basically about a bunch of "junkies" living in Edinburgh, and the main character Renton is constantly trying to get off drugs. It had bad language and is quite an adult book and can be quite graphic. Overall I thought it was a good book (although it might be hard to understand for people from America etc, since it's written in the way a Scottish person would speak) It's funny, witty but quite serious and dark. I'd recommend it for most people :}
The characters are also very good, they range from Spud who is lovable and I constantly felt sorry for him. To Begbie, a "hard-man" who I honestly couldn't spend two minutes in a room with. So yeah, go read it!

[Bleeding Ink]

I need to read this for Alevel english lit, but the accent in the language is such a barrier! I can only get through it a few pages at a time, reading it aloud in a scottish accent xD

[Kallzor]

I would also like to review Trainspotting as I have been expanding my reading tastes hugely recently and amongst all of the new stuff I've been chewing through, Trainspotting really left an impression. So here's mine:

Trainspotting is a book that is at first difficult to read and immerse yourself in (due to the fact it is written in phonetic, Scottish dialect) but will eventually beguile you with it's perceptive grasp of the human condition; namely the fragility and stark humanity of those with absolutely no hope.

The characters are dark (with the sole exception of Spud), the events - dull and depressing, relationships are manipulative at best and horridly abusive at worst. Nothing ever seems to happen in Edinburgh for the main characters and indeed the book makes it feel as if nothing ever *has* happened or will happen again. Caught in the economic stranglehold of the Thatcherite 80's, there are no jobs, no money, no prospects and nothing to do. Except, of course, the eternal chase for junk. This is where the anecdotes and small time stories that make up the book come from - the people, grifts, risks, pains and losses that comes from being associated with a hardcore drug habit. The main protagonist, Renton, is endlessly either "on the skag" or "off the skag" and seemingly never happy with either for differing reasons.

The book is exceptionally human in a very animalistic way - the descriptions are very dirty and gross...the sex scenes are ANYTHING but sexy and in fact could probably put you off sex for a few days. However there is a very stripped back, honest sense of humour that pervades the whole thing. There were several scenes in the book that despite being utterly awful, I found myself laughing even though I felt I shouldn't....one particular scene where Renton stays with an older Greek guy that he meets in a porno movie theatre stands out in particular and even makes me smile now.

All up, Trainspotting is exceptionally bleak but relentlessly honest which makes for a very compelling read. I'd recommend it to anyone who's got the stomach for it! xD