Boom!

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This book was first published in 1992 under the title Gridzbi Spudvetch! It was a ridiculous thing to call a book. No one knew how to pronounce it. And no one knew what it meant until they’d read the story. As a result only twenty-three people bought the book. Actually, that’s an exaggeration, but not much. It rapidly went out of print. It would have stayed out of print, but over the years a string of people got in touch to say how much they loved the book. On several occasions my publishers asked whether I wanted to update it for a new edition.

It certainly needed updating. It was full of references to floppy disks and Walkmans and cassette players. But it needed more than that. There were numerous little holes in the plot. Much of the writing was clumsy. And I couldn’t read it without thinking Ouch! on almost every page. A new edition would need major rewriting. Rewriting takes time, however. And I didn’t have much.

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