Reality, and Other Stories by John Lanchester review / Horror for the digital age

BOOKS OF THE YEAR

Reality, and Other Stories by John Lanchester review – horror for the digital age

Vinegar-sharp ghost stories play with the hold that technology has over all of us

Christopher Shrimpton
Thu 22 Oct 2020 12.00 BST

J

ohn Lanchester’s first collection of short stories begins with a lesson in etiquette. “You aren’t allowed to ask for the Wi-Fi password before you say hello,” says the narrator to his nine year old son. “It’s simply one of the rules.”

 

John Lanchester

John Lanchester Q&A: “I’d like to be the kind of rich person who doesn’t do much”

The novelist discusses childhood memories of Labuan, life lessons from his father and the flaws of heroes. 

25 November 2020

John Lanchester was born in Hamburg in 1962. A journalist and novelist, he is the author of nine books, including “The Wall”, which was longlisted for the 2019 Booker.

What’s your earliest memory?

The house on stilts where we lived on Labuan, an island off Borneo. I turned three while we lived there. There was jungle, a landing craft left over from the Second World War, and a lizard which walked through the garden at teatime.