2666, September 2009, 8.5/10.
Written by Roberto Bolaño, published by Picador.
This monumental opus is composed of five parts, connected among each other by a web of tenuous links and subtle cross-references. Though each section could be a novel in its own right (and so, it seems, was the will of the author), reading the book as a whole allows us to grasp the ambitiousness of this sprawling, chaotic, and truly engaging book. All sections have a different feel to them and are written in a different style. In the first section a group of academics specialized in contemporary German literature search for their – vanished – fetish author. Their relationships evolve and mutate, involving various combinations of sex, love and friendship. But despite the explosive emotions B.describes, there is, throughout the section, an overrationalization, a sense of brainy restraint, that is stifling. And while the fifth section, dedicated to the life of the vanished author, is more dreamy and poetic, though still dramatic, the fourth section is a, seemingly infinite, catalogue of forensic reports that detail horryfing murders. B. gives us no respite, as the sickening catalogue just keeps on going, and no hope, amid incompetent investigators and corrupt powers. This book is many thing at once and it’s a great ride.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 8.5/10, Chilean, Roberto Bolano, South American
The Passion
The Passion, June 2009, 8/10.
Written by Jeanette Winterson. Published by Vintage.
I found this very distinct novel an interesting, moreish read. Written by an obviously well informed author it is divided into four sections and tells two unrelated stories that become entwined, and the novel is punctuated by a refrain that leads a thoughtful reader to question what characters are doing and why. The story’s obvious theme (also the theme of the side stories and historical acts depicted) is passion, particularly as a motivation to act in otherwise irrational ways, and it is considered at many levels, including by empires, nations, armies, leaders, followers, small groups, and individuals of various backgrounds (rich, poor, urban, rural, etc.). Although written in a melodic and relaxed prose the words are precise and have been chosen carefully, and the plot develops at a good pace throughout.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 8/10, British, Fiction, Jeanette Winterson
An Exact Replica Of A Figment Of My Imagination
An Exact Replica Of A Figment Of My Imagination, June 2009, 6.5/10.
Written by Elizabeth McCracken. Published by Little, Brown and Company.
This novella was a tenderly told and touching story, one that was terrifying, heartbreaking and somehow a little bit uplifting. Written about one of the most awful experiences imaginable the story was told very openly, but such frankness was a prerequisite if this book was going to hold the reader’s attention and draw him in, which it did. My primary criticism is that the writing was too scatty and too lightly edited; chapters were often very short, many paragraphs were interrupted by new thoughts (or old ones returning), ideas were introduced and dropped and reintroduced later, etc.. If this was a literary device to emphasise confusion and disorientation I thought that it was a heavy-handed one, and I suspect that it was just the way the author wanted to tell this story.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 6.5/10, American, Elizabeth McCracken, Memoir, Nonfiction
Cat's Cradle
Cat’s Cradle, June 2009, 8/10.
Written by Kurt Vonnegut, Published by Dial Press.
Another Vonnegut novella that has become a modern classic and another that was too much of a science fiction book for me to have really loved, which is not to say this I didn’t think that this was a fine book. The everyman narrator does a good job of getting (and holding) the reader’s attention, making the implausible seem ordinary, but what really draws the reader here is not the story on the surface but the messages that it conveys. Drawing on an invented religion (treated as a type of official book of lies) and man’s ability to destruct, the writing is rarely punctuated by the obvious truths that the author rarely allows out. Other major ideas focus on personal responsibility and the benefits of truth.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 8/10, American, Kurt Vonnegut, Modern Classic, Novella, Science Fiction
Slaughterhouse-Five
Slaughterhouse-Five, or The Children’s Crusade: A Duty Dance With Death, June 2009, 7/10.
Written by Kurt Vonnegut. Published by Dial Press.
This modern classic was a quick read that was deceptively clever; a simple novella that works on multiple levels depending how deeply the reader wants to think. Contained both the message and the creativity that one expects of Vonnegut, but for my taste it was a little bit too science-fictiony. Despite the disordered timeframe the narrative is not difficult to follow, with the author obviously preferring to have his readership focus on what he writes about man’s motives, place, treatment of others and ability to control, which I would guess are the primary themes among many others. Many of the book’s more interesting ideas are drawn out through contrast with the alternative perspective of the aliens encountered by the protagonist.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 7/10, American, Fiction, Kurt Vonnegut, Modern Classic, Novella, Science Fiction
Then We Came To The End
Then We Came To The End, June 2009, 6.5/10.
Written by Joshua Ferris. Published by Little, Brown and Company.
This novel, one of the NY Times best books of the year in 2007, was disappointing. Although substantially better than the typical output of a creative writing workshop, it still felt and read as though it was rooted in that environment, and although the book did tick all the boxes of what one would expect from a first novel by a new and exciting young author (black humour, fast dialogue, varying narrative perspectives, etc.) I felt that the novel never really developed as it could have. Filled with forgettable characters, the passably interesting plotline was nicely handled, with the obligatory twists and turns, but in this case the story was not mature enough to make them particularly exciting.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 6.5/10, American, Fiction, First Book, Joshua Ferris
Sabbath's Theatre
Sabbath’s Theatre, June 2009, 8.5/10.
Written by Philip Roth. Published by Vintage.
A tremendously sad novel that is difficult to review. Perhaps the best example of the author’s versatility that I have read, I think that one could ascribe many themes to this novel without difficulty, and with so much going on in the way that the protagonist deals with himself and with those around him it isn’t necessarily incorrect to do so. The character development here is remarkable, and the personal and family history as well as the rationalising that occurs as things happen are done very well; I doubt many readers could forget the story or players quickly. The writing style is raw and aggressive and the language and ideas are complicated, and I read this book with a dictionary. Not a book for those afraid of bad language.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 8.5/10, American, Fiction, Philip Roth
Notes on a Scandal, May 2009, 7/10.
Written by Zoë Heller. Published by Penguin Books.
The novel’s title and basic plot – the love/sex affair between an attractive 40 years old teacher, Sheba, and her 15 years old student – might induce you to think the book will be all about Nabokovian pleasures and frenzies. However, the self-appointed chronicler is not Sheba, but an older colleague of her, a bleakly lonely spinster, whose friendship with Sheba blurs into obsession and of whose truthfulness we become more and more doubtful as we read along. It’s her deranged but lucid personality that keeps on surfacing throughout the book. This novel is really about the complex and disturbing relationship among the two women, and its transformation into mutual, and partly coerced, dependency. It’s a gripping read, very anguishing.
Categories: Uncategorized
Tagged: 7/10, British fiction, Zoe Heller
