Only When I Larf
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| Only When I Larf | |
| Author | Len Deighton |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | Not credited by book publisher |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Comic thriller novel |
| Publisher | Sphere Books |
| Publication date | 1968 |
| Media type | Print (Paperback) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0 7221 2986 6 |
Only When I Larf is a late 1960s British comic thriller describing the activities of a team of three fictional confidence tricksters lead by Silas Lowther (late 40s), his girlfriend Liz Mason (late 20s) and wannabe apprentice and Liz-worshipper Bob (early 20s). The novel dates from Len Deighton's experimental period after the three Harry Palmer books and was published in 1968 by Michael Joseph and in paperback by Sphere. It is currently (2007) out of print.
The novel interleaves first-person narratives from Bob (76 pages in 7 chapters), Liz (78 pages in 6 chapters) and Silas (88 pages in 5 chapters). Their increasingly contradictory descriptions of shared experiences contribute to the humor. This unreliable narration adds to the atmosphere around deceiving "the marks", but the characters' different perspectives on their mutual relationship (interspersed with Silas's day-dreams of a dishonourable wartime incident) look more like self-deception and often add a poignant note. The title is explained in a variety of unlikely anecdotes where in each case a critically injured third party bravely replies this when asked "Does it hurt?". Only When I Larf also continues the Harry Palmer trend of depicting 1960s class relationships as quaintly important to male protagonists as observed by perhaps more objective young women of the time.
[edit] Film, TV or theatrical adaptations
A film[1] adapted from the novel was released in 1968 starring Richard Attenborough as Silas, David Hemmings as Bob and Alexandra Stewart as Liz and has been well reviewed [2] [3] [4] though some feel it is "a plodding adaptation" of the original novel [5].
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