Capital - Rambling Readers

Paperback, 528 pages

English language

Published May 28, 2013 by W. W. Norton & Company.

ISBN:: 978-0-393-34509-4

(1 review)

Capital (ISBN 9780571234622) is a novel by John Lanchester, published by Faber and Faber in 2012. The novel is set in London prior to and during the 2008 financial crisis, jumping between December 2007, April 2008, and August 2008. The title refers both to London as the capital city of the United Kingdom, and to financial capital. All of the main characters have a connection to Pepys Road, a street in the south London suburb of Clapham. The book deals with multiple contemporary issues in British life including the financial crisis of 2007–08, immigration, Islamic extremism, celebrity, and property prices. In 2015 a three-part TV adaptation by Peter Bowker, and starring Lesley Sharp and Toby Jones, was filmed. The first episode was broadcast on BBC One on 24 November 2015.

1 edition

Sean Randall reviewed Capital by John Lanchester

Review of 'Capital' on 'Goodreads'

4 stars

This was a very complex novel, not in terms of what I understood but I think more in the ideas it tries to convey. On the surface, it’s just a glimpse into the lives of a few people and is not very remarkable for anything else, but the way in which it captures these people’s feelings, beliefs, goals and dreams is actually very well done. I didn’t get the thrill of a fantastic space battle, nor the unmasking of a spy or adrenaline rush of a thriller. But there’s a lot of subtlety to everyone, isn’t there? People, and by that I mean every person, has their own agenda, and it’s refreshing, even though it took me over 4 hours to read this thing, it’s refreshing to see that depicted in such an approachable, readable, and yes indeed enjoyable way.