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Terry Eagleton is best known as an, albeit unorthodox, Marxist writer on literary theory, so one could well expect a collection of some of his best literary reviews to be chock-full of impenetrable jargon. But looks can be deceiving: this collection, titled "Figures of Dissent", is in fact quite entertaining, even for those who have no particular training or interest in high-minded lit-crit. The title is somewhat odd, as the subjects under review have nothing in particular in common (except their works being published in English at some point), least of all some sort of status as 'dissenter'. The authors involved are on the other hand all interesting and varied, and this makes the book in fact rather a page-turner.

Most appealing about the reviews is Eagleton's unsurpassed mastery of both style and content. He pairs erudite literary insight with a sharp wit and a strongly developed sense of irony, which makes his reviews both informative as statements on literature and highly effective as polemics. Moreover, in contrast to many collections of such essays by famous theorists, the vast majority of the reviews involved can be considered to be overall 'positive', and Eagleton deftly avoids the grumpy predictability of the entrenched newspaper critic.

Admittedly, one could complain that the collection is rather unduly focused on British literature, and there are many references to literature theorists as well as writers who are not likely to ring a bell with anyone outside the Isles, but this is easily forgiven as Eagleton is the best guide to the subject one might wish for. It does help to have a particular interest in Anglo-Irish literature, as this is Eagleton's specialty and a recurring theme in the book, and perhaps choosing this as the subject of the first two or three reviews in the book was not well-chosen. But the reader discovers soon enough that Eagleton has something intelligent to say about pretty much any subject from Dario Fo to Bill Gates, and his short-and-to-the-point criticisms of ideology hit home like so many arrows of Artemis (one will find the book very quotable). The high point of this collection as well as his artful irony is when Eagleton reviews David Beckham's autobiography, which is mercilessly dissected in a very comical dry style without ever becoming condescending to its subject.

Much recommended to anyone who enjoys English language literature.