One of fiction's greatest chancers - the story of Denry Machin and his unceasing, ingenious efforts to become a great man Set in the raw, Victorian world of the 'Five Towns', The Card tells the extremely funny and tangled story of Denry Machin's rise from mediocrity to fame through a series of ludicrous and yet perversely successful schemes. He dances, pleads, cheats and inspires his way through life in a series of set-pieces which wonderfully evoke a now long-gone world of civic balls, seaside excursions, newspaper boys and patent chocolate remedies. As everybody said after one of his most stylish coups, Denry 'was not simply a card; he was the card.'

All Editions

Paperback, 5th Edition

ISBN13: 9780241255544

Penguin Classics, 2016

Share Your Thoughts

Your review helps others make informed decisions

Click on a star to start your review