Theft

Every novel Peter Carey writes is a rollicking adventure and this one is no exception. I love his way with words that is always original, and his idiosyncratic characters.

Theft tells the story of Michael "Butcher" Boone, an Australian artist whose career is in the doldrums. The novel alternates between the viewpoint of Butcher and that of his "damaged" brother Hugh. And yes, there is theft in the novel,…and scams and forgeries too. This is my favourite of all Carey’s novels. 

Peter Carey’s Theft: A Love Story is a funny, fast-moving, and satirical send-up of the contemporary art world of the 1980s, featuring a swashbuckling, over-the-hill Australian former art star, “Butcher,” just released from prison (jailed for stealing his own work from his former wife), his clearly on-the-spectrum and severely overweight brother, and a mysterious, beautiful femme fatale, who just happens to be the daughter-in-law of a famous dead artist. She arrives on the scene to authenticate a painting by her late father-in-law, which Butcher owns, but is soon stolen. Meanwhile, she becomes interested in rekindling Butcher’s dwindling career and her… show more.