Meanwhile

I was given this book by a friend who told me "you like weird stuff, read this!" So I read "Meanwhile" and thoroughly enjoyed it. The book's premise is that men have been banished to the ocean, where they live in a giant bubble. Procreation is achieved by cloning. Whilst women live on the earth and are born of a giant woman "The Whale" by means of Immaculate Conception. Also on the earth are the Orphachins; a hoard of flesh eating male youths.With me so far?As I read the book with no preconceptions, it did not occur to me until I searched fr some information on the Internet that the book was of the Science Fiction genre. That said at times it did remind me of a Kurt Vonnegut/Kilgore Trout novel - which of course is no bad thing! It is truly funny in places. The funniest premise being that the main character, Brother Two has amassed a collection of "Sacred Manuscripts" which are, shall we say, magazines of an adult nature. This leads to him earnestly uttering some of the colourful language written therein in a bid to find "an Angel".Whilst I doubt that Max Handley's Meanwhile will ever become a classic, I am sure the characters and plot will stay with me for a long time. Which is surely a good measure of an enjoyable, well written book?