Review of the book in The Spectator

Complete and Utter Zebu by Simon Rose and Steve Caplin (Old Street Publishing, £8.99) is one of several books this year (and every year) to be fuelled by rage, frustration and disappointment. A zebu is a large and ungainly mammal whose unfeasibly chewy meat is often passed off as ‘steak’ in pubs and restaurants. The utter shamelessness of this deception has inspired Rose and Caplin to seek out other examples of lies and bullshit in the world today, of which there are so many I feel confident they could make this an annual volume.

Of course this is not unfamiliar territory. If you coralled all the writers who make a decent living from ranting about the iniquities of modern life into Wembley Stadium, and locked the door behind them… well, I’m not sure I’d mind terribly. What distinguishes Rose and Caplin from the pack is their extreme reasonableness. They come from opposing political viewpoints, so for anything to get into their book, it has to have appalled them both. Instead of ranting, they offer thorough research, some good, clear writing and a likeable tone of mild melancholy, as though this is really all we can hope to expect. By comparison, most of this year’s grumpy-old-men books are complete and utter zebu.

Sunday Telegraph review

Sunday Times review