Advertisement
Books

Venomous Lumpsucker review: The most original – and horrifying – novel of the year

Ned Beauman’s comedy of errors dares to inject humour into the most terrifying aspects of climate change and extinction

Venomous Lumpsucker is out now (Hodder & Stoughton)

If there were a literary award just for titles it would be difficult to imagine anyone beating Ned Beauman’s Venomous Lumpsucker this year.

The latest novel from the Booker-longlisted author is set in the 2030s after climate change has reaped exactly what it promises to sow. Mass extinction has become so common that there are severe penalties for anyone who causes an intelligent species to disappear, which is something that may or not have just happened with the venomous lumpsucker. 

Beauman’s comedy of errors, which dares to inject humour into the most horrifying aspects of climate change and extinction, is undoubtedly the most original novel of the year. He has constructed a truly horrifying vision of our future, not because of the desolate landscapes or the acidic lakes, but because the people in charge appear to be as useless as they are now. God help us all.

Barry Pierce is a journalist and cultural commentator

You can buy Venomous Lumpsucker from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

This article is taken from The Big Issue magazine. If you cannot reach your local vendor, you can still click HERE to subscribe to The Big Issue today or give a gift subscription to a friend or family member.You can also purchase one-off issues from The Big Issue Shop or The Big Issue app, available now from the App Store or Google Play.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Change a vendor's life this Christmas

This Christmas, 3.8 million people across the UK will be facing extreme poverty. Thousands of those struggling will turn to selling the Big Issue as a vital source of income - they need your support to earn and lift themselves out of poverty.

Recommended for you

Read All
Ground by Jadelin Gangbo review – hope for healing amid the wreckage
Books

Ground by Jadelin Gangbo review – hope for healing amid the wreckage

Gliff by Ali Smith review – ingenious and warm anti-establishment storytelling
Books

Gliff by Ali Smith review – ingenious and warm anti-establishment storytelling

Horrible Histories author Terry Deary: 'The most important day in history is tomorrow'
Books

Horrible Histories author Terry Deary: 'The most important day in history is tomorrow'

Top 5 books in rhyme, chosen by children's author Vicky Cowie
Books

Top 5 books in rhyme, chosen by children's author Vicky Cowie

Most Popular

Read All
Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits
Renters: A mortgage lender's window advertising buy-to-let products
1.

Renters pay their landlords' buy-to-let mortgages, so they should get a share of the profits

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal
Pound coins on a piece of paper with disability living allowancve
2.

Exclusive: Disabled people are 'set up to fail' by the DWP in target-driven disability benefits system, whistleblowers reveal

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over
next dwp cost of living payment 2023
3.

Cost of living payment 2024: Where to get help now the scheme is over

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue
4.

Citroën Ami: the tiny electric vehicle driving change with The Big Issue