The Echo Chamber

What a thing of wonder a mobile phone is. Six ounces of metal glass and plastic fashioned into a sleek shiny precious object. At once a gateway to other worlds - and a treacherous weapon in the hands of the unwary the unwitting the inept. The Cleverley family live a gilded life little realising how precarious their privilege is just one tweet away from disaster. George the patriarch is a stalwart of television interviewing a national treasure (his words) his wife Beverley a celebrated novelist (although not as celebrated as she would like) and their children Nelson Elizabeth Achilles various degrees of catastrophe waiting to happen. Together they will go on a journey of discovery through the Hogarthian jungle of the modern living where past presumptions count for nothing and carefully curated reputations can be destroyed in an instant. Along the way they will learn how volatile how outraged how unforgiving the world can be when you step from the proscribed path. Powered by John Boynes characteristic humour and razor-sharp observation The Echo Chamber is a satiric helter skelter a dizzying downward spiral of action and consequence poised somewhere between farce absurdity and oblivion. To err is maybe to be human but to really foul things up you only need a phone. Review The funniest book Ive read in ages. Savage but compelling ―Ian RankinAn uproariously funny novel... John Boyne skilfully skewers the cruelties of social media and the absurdities of wokeness ... a brave and timely foray into the contemporary culture wars. ―Financial TimesA fearless romp with big laughs along the way ―Graham NortonA comedy of manners and lack of manners ... good fun and cheeky as hell ―Ryan TubridyHis relish is infectious ―The Times About the Author John Boyne is the author of thirteen novels for adults six for younger readers and a collection of short stories. His 2006 novelThe Boy in the Striped Pyjamas has sold more than 11 million copies worldwide and has been adapted for cinema theatre ballet and opera. His many international bestsellers includeThe Hearts Invisible Furies andA Ladder to the Sky. He has won three Irish Book Awards along with a host of other international literary prizes. His novels are published in over fifty languages.