This Guardian review considers *Is Beauty Good*, a 1989 novel by Rosalind Belben, now reissued by Sheffield-based independent publisher And Other Stories. The critic praises it as an unconventional, dreamlike work that follows its predecessor, *Dreaming of Dead People*, and cements Belben's reputation for eccentric, boundary-pushing fiction that combines humour with harsh observation.

The novel is structured as 30 vignettes across three sections, ranging from one to nine pages, exploring dreams, memory, ageing and the natural world through shifting, often unreliable narrators. The reviewer likens Belben's style, marked by fragmented syntax, dropped letters and abruptly truncated sentences, to free jazz, warning it won't suit every reader but calling it exhilarating for those drawn to formally daring writing.