Sofia's Reviews > The Black Book

Initially published in Paris in 1938, when Lawrence Durrell was only twenty six, “The Black Book” was banned in Great Britain for nearly four decades until 1973 due to its ‘obscenity’. Understandably, this immediately piqued my interest, but I was left a little disappointed on this front as its debauchery doesn’t really go beyond explicit references to sex, homosexuality and swearing - all pretty tame by todays standards.

It follows Gregory, who upon disappearing, leaves behind his diaries in a seedy London hotel. Discovered and read by Lawrence Lucifer, they describe the exploits of a clique of intellectuals living a life of squalid debauchery: struggling writers and artists consumed by loves, lusts, and a quest for innovation. But as they satisfy violent appetites of the flesh - and mind - their descent into darkness accelerates.

I found this book hard to get through at parts. Written in a dreamlike, almost nonsensical, stream of consciousness, it reflects the narrator’s state of mind, but made it hard for me to follow. Though this dense text has the occasional description that I liked and I can understand it’s historical significance, it was not a book I can honestly say I enjoyed reading.