I’ve said it before: the novel one reads after a stunning reading experience is bound to lose in comparison, and this applies to ‘Death in the sauna’.I’ve said it before: the novel one reads after a stunning reading experience is bound to lose in comparison, and this applies to ‘Death in the sauna’. For an alleged mystery, there is no tension, no excitement as to “who did it”. The author uses his pre-eminent knowledge of the early years of the AIDS epidemic to fashion a murder mystery. But it just doesn’t work; and, once again I aim my trigger at the editor. This is the second novel of recent reading that appears to have had no editorial input. There are howlers of grammar that haven’t been picked up, and one character “sighs” three times within two pages. The eminent Altman needs to stick to what he knows best. Sigh....more
Mallon’s latest is an imaginative tour-de-force; a fictionalised biography of the life, career and death of Dick Kallman, a ‘B’ grade television perforMallon’s latest is an imaginative tour-de-force; a fictionalised biography of the life, career and death of Dick Kallman, a ‘B’ grade television performer and occasional theatre actor/singer, whose ambition overwhelmed his limited talent and personality.
“… on Dick Kallman ambition stuck out like a cowlick or horn, fatal to an audience’s complete belief in almost any character he was playing.”
Mallon’s genius is to interweave real people from the 1950s and 60s into the narrative, bringing a sense of verisimilitude and wonder. (I googled some of the ‘names’ I wasn’t familiar with, and sure enough, they were there). Not only does the author immerse The Reader into the world of semi-celebrity, but throws in a murder as well; what more could you ask for?...more
Makkai has set her best novel yet in two time periods: Chicago in the mid 1980s and Paris in 2015. The character that spans the two is Fiona; it is FiMakkai has set her best novel yet in two time periods: Chicago in the mid 1980s and Paris in 2015. The character that spans the two is Fiona; it is Fiona’s older brother, Nico, who has died from an AIDS related illness in 1985. After this, her life revolves around Nico’s friends, of whom Yale is one. Her love and care for these men can’t be disputed, however at what cost to her own life? Late in the novel, Fiona reflects that she’d “been living for the past thirty years in a deafening echo. She’d been tending the graveyard alone, oblivious to the fact that the world had moved on...” And it is in Paris that The Reader becomes fully aware of Fiona’s sacrifice (obsession?), attempting to connect with her adult daughter, a clumsy attempt that is almost painful to read with Fiona’s naïveté and hurt so visceral. Meanwhile back in the 80s, Yale’s life is crumbling around him, personally and professionally and where the betrayals threaten to overwhelm him. Ambitious in scope and achievement, and having read two of her previous novels, this is a revelatory success for Rebecca Makkai....more
If a readership could be won by earnestness and good intentions this novel would capture an enthusiastic audience. However this debut novel from a proIf a readership could be won by earnestness and good intentions this novel would capture an enthusiastic audience. However this debut novel from a professor of medicine, who began his internship in 1981 simply moves too slowly to grab a general reader's interest. If you're interested in the early days of the AIDS epidemic and the mystification and uncertainties it engendered in the doctors at the front line you might want to give this a go....more