Coketown University, also known as the 'plughole of England', is where thirty-something Morris Gutman has achieved the mighty heights of temporary lecturer. He's temporary in other ways too - chronically indecisive, easily distracted and barely awake most of the time. Life hasn't turned out as he planned it. His wife hates her job, his child is demanding and insomniac, and he teaches courses like 'Misogyny and the Novel' to ungrateful English students. Now Morris is hoping to negotiate a permanent department job under the noses of smarter and better candidates by being obsequious, cheap, and willing to do anything. But first, he must forge his way through a minefield of waffle and back-biting that is academia. Most importantly he has to win over the driven and dangerous Zoe Cable, a sexually voracious research fellow who tends to ignore him. Morris soon finds himself thrust into Zoe's game, even though he's not too sure of the rules. "Incredible Bodies" is a sordid and hilarious tale of whopping academic grants, alcoholic excess, sleeping on the job, surprise impregnations, and sexual shenagigans.

Author Biography

Ian McGuire currently teaches American Literature at the University of Manchester. This is his first novel. He lives in Manchester with his wife and two children.