657. Crash

Crash
J.G. Ballard
1973

Around 225 pages

I had the slight apprehension when I saw the title of this novel that it was the basis for the 2004 movie Crash, which the other List made me watch. But once I realized this was written by J.G. Ballard, I knew he could never come up with anything that sanctimonious. What can I say, the List makes you jumpy sometimes. 

The List gods have been deaf to my pleas for less gross novels. I guess life is gross and we just need to deal with it, but can we at least have a moratorium on the word "mucus?" Our main character (who is also named James Ballard), is in a car crash that kills a man, but James and the man's wife are only injured. So of course James has an affair with the widow, because we are strictly in male fantasy land. James meets Vaughan, who gets sexually turned on by car crashes.

The List sure has introduced me to a lot of fetishes. Ballard doesn't shy away from depicting all the carnage of car accidents, and he treats sex the same way. It's a pretty disturbing read, and will certainly make you hesitant to trust male drivers. 

I have to give him props for being such a visceral writer, but not my cup of tea. 

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

One publisher's reader returned the verdict "This author is beyond psychiatric help. Do Not Publish!"

A 1973 reviewer in The New York Times wrote: "Crash is, hands-down, the most repulsive book I've yet to come across."

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