Books like Eleven

What a lucky find. I have been to see Mark Watson's stand-up performance before, and really enjoy his sense of humour, but I had no idea he could write as well! And while his stand-up can be quite frenetic at times, his writing (in this case, at least) is very measured and restrained. The comparisons to David Nicholls are spot-on in my opinion - love them both.Watson's humour and his fondness of Australia shine through, but this is not a comedy. It's almost a parable - a story about action and inaction. Xavier Ireland has run away from his life in Melbourne; away from his family and his tight-knit, friends-since-primary-school little 'gang', to start over in London. There, over the past 5 years, he has become reasonably successful and popular as the host of a radio program on the graveyard shift. During this particular London winter, Xavier's failure to effectively intervene in a bullying incident out on the street, has a knock-on effect for 11 characters. We don't know why Xavier left Melbourne until well into the second half of the book. When the reason was finally revealed, my heart was in my mouth. I would almost say it had more of an impact than the ending, which left a bit to the reader's imagination.The beauty of this story is in the detailed characterisation of what might at first appear to be a rather large cast. But that detail makes it easy to keep track of everyone and where they fit in the interconnectedness of all things.Highly recommended, 4.5★