Paperback. Pub Date: 2003 Pages: 592 Publisher: Penguin A illiant the Voyage of Discovery into the deeply unfashionable fringes of London. 'It is not often that one reads a book and is convinced that it's an instant classic but I 'm sure that London Orbital will be read 50 years from now. This account of his walk around the M25 is on one level a journey into the heart of darkness. that terrain of golf courses. retail parks and industrial estates which is Blair's itain. It's a fascinating snapshot of who we are. lit by Sinclair's vivid prose. and on another level a warning that the mythological England of village greens and cycling aunts has been buried under the rush of a million radial tyres' - JG Ballard. Observer.Contents : Prejudices declare; soothing the seething - up the Lea Valley with Bill Drummond (and the Unabomber); Paradise Gardens - Waltham Abbey to Shenley; Col...

What a discovery. if anybody had told me that a book could make we want to explore the M25, I would have thought they were mad. But this book did. Sinclair, on the surface seems to be cynicism personified, but this book is imbued with an affection and love for the sub-ordinary found in the secret and not-so-secret places surrounding London. Very funny, full of information and insight, a real pleasure to read. ( )

Dense. Reminds me of JG Ballard's Super-Cannes. ( )

It was kinda fun joining the author and his friends walking around London on the M25 and environs. But there's a lot of digressions and references that a lot of readers might not get or get tired of. The place I'm writing from Edmonton, also has a ring road ( The Anthony Henday) and lot of the issues of the M25 could also be applied here. But generally I think it's magnificent being able to get to places faster and avoid traffic lights. Except during rush hour. I liked the history that the author presents on his walk and the lay of the land he manages to convey. ( )

I started this book 2 weeks ago. Ages ago. It felt like I was the one doing the walking on the M25 around London! And yet, I thoroughly enjoyed Mr. Sinclair's British walkabout. I began with the intention that I was going to understand everything that was going on - I read the first two parts while sitting at the computer and looking at London and the M25 on Google maps, with extra windows open in Safari so I could check up on all the fast-flowing and random references that were being strewn about, but it just became too much. For the last three quarters of the book, I settled for living vicariously through Iain Sinclair's words, using my imagination to picture it, and cheering at the few tidbits of information I caught and waving like one of his dear asylum dwellers at the ones that flew over my head. It really was a fascinating book, but long and wordy and with the unfortunate tendency of putting me to sleep. Now that I'm finished I can say that it was a great experience, but one I'm unlikely to repeat in the future - unless I suddenly move to London or surrounding area and have an itch at hiking around it. Then I'll bring it along for ballast. ( )