Nick Cave - The Death Of Bunny Munro (Audiobook)

Audio-visual carrot for devout Caveists and Bunny boilers Initially, Nick Cave’s second novel, coming 20 years after his apocalyptic And The Ass Saw The Angel, comes as something of a surprise. It forsakes the Southern gothic and darkly-exotic scenarios of previous work to graphically relate the sordid last days of a sex-crazed alcoholic handcream salesman from Brighton whose wife commits suicide, leaving Bunny taking his nine-year-old son on a nightmare road trip to his surreally-violent end. As the author skilfully ups gears towards the provocative and appalling conclusion, the man becomes as repulsive as any previous Cave baddie, while, thanks to his relationship with his adoring son, the novel ends up packing the cathartic emotional wallop of his most grandiose work.

The novel is also available as a lavishly-packaged audiobook featuring Cave reading the story over seven CDs (slipcases adorned with his original handwritten script). To heighten the insidiously-unsettling effect, Cave and musical collaborator Warren Ellis have added poignantly atmospheric music, while artists Iain Forsyth and Jane Pollard, currently making the mini-films accompanying the reissue programme, have produced a 3D audio-spatial mix designed for maximum headphone experience. They’ve also filmed Cave reading selected highlights against relevant backdrops for a bonus DVD, completing an unusual and highly-desirable item for Cave devotees and rabbit fanciers.

4 stars 4 stars 4 stars 4 stars

Canongate | tbc

Reviewed by Kris Needs
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