I picked up a copy of Footfall, by Larry Niven and Jerry Pournelle. Only 50p from our local cancer-based charity shop. That’s a little more than the heart-disease inspired 20p shop down the road, but cancer charities are always a bit flush, and can afford to aim for the more discerning second-hand book buyer.
At 700 pages, I was pretty sure it was great value for money, until I came to this passage:
Ted Griffin was a big man, tall and beefy and built like the football player he’d been. He looked as if he might shout a lot, but in fact he almost never did.
I’m not saying I haven’t enjoyed the book so far, but this is clearly one of the worst things that has ever been written. They sure like the word ‘beefy’. Can’t wait until the aliens arrive.
