Time's Arrow - by Martin Amis. Mini-review

I bought this because I read an essay in which someone referred to it, and when looking up the origin of the reference, it struck me as an premise for a book. It turns out that the book works as an interesting thought experiment, and an exercise in highly impressive technical writing but it is not a work of beauty.

The basic premise of the book is that it is narrated by an observer (an entity of some kind of spiritual/mental nature) who accompanies a person throughout his life, but the observer experiences time backwards rather than forwards. The observer can see through the person's eyes, and hear things (conversations are related backwards, but thankfully each line is written forwards - nonetheless, it isn't very easy to read as a result). The observer is also aware of the person's moods.

So, the story starts with the death of the person, which is experienced as a birth by the observer.

The rest of the story basically involves going through a life backwards. That's about it.

It is quite an interesting life, I suppose... (I won't say what the character did when he was younger).

And it was actually worth reading, just because the writing must have involved a lot of thought, and was thus able to offer up a new perspective on human actions. Ethically, for example, being a doctor looks strange when you observe it backwards: it appears that all these healthy people are gradually disassembled and made unwell by the doctor.

This worked again and again for different aspects of human experience. It was intellectually stimulating purely on that front. But still, it was not a pleasant read, and I would definitely not recommend it for enjoyment.

Two novels by Ann Patchett. Mini-review.

I read State of Wonder last year, and Run not long after, and enjoyed both books, but wasn't left with a great desire to read much more by Ann Patchett. I could well imagine State of Wonder being made into a film -and if they did I'd watch it- but I felt the latter book was lacking in punch and interest.

State of Wonder has an Amazonian setting which her writing makes the star of the show in some ways. A sense of the mysterious and the impenetrable, as well as the treasure of these great rainforests is pervasive. I never quite liked Marina, the protagonist, but I found myself rooting for her nonetheless, as you often do with the main character. Patchett is good at sketching characters, particularly strong women, though other than the stubborn and single-minded Dr Swenson, few of them really mattered to me as I read. I think the main reason why I felt this book was a hit, whilst Run was not, is due to Run not having such interesting subject matter. The ethical scandal at the heart of State of Wonder is original enough and morally intriguing enough to justify the gradual reveal of the plot. The book also explores the themes of bravery, stupidity, and recklessness in a perceptive and enlightening way.

In Run we meet the Doyle family, where the main character again is an academic interested in nature / biological science. Again, as with Marina, I didn't find Tip (that's his name) particularly likeable. This time, however, rather than strong females being at the heart of the book, the story explores the lack of females. Or rather, the lack of one wonderful woman, Tip and Teddy's mother. Her loss is the centrepoint around which the story manoeuvres and pivots, a sense which is only enhanced by the use of Catholic Marian imagery. Tip & Teddy are brothers, and whilst I generally enjoy stories involving brothers, in this case I felt the contrast between the two of them was rather blatant and obvious, and didn't make for any interesting tension. The way in which their family became intertwined with a young girl called Kenya was the central drama, but still this did not work for me. Oh, did I mention that this was also a story about race? Oh yes, Tip and Teddy are black and adopted by a white family. That's all fine, but the story just felt tame, and there was nothing of any great interest to report.

I've heard Bel Canto is her best book. I'd definitely read that. However, I won't be rushing to read all her works, as on the evidence of these two, they will be of variable quality.