Huge potential obscured by the style

This is my review of The Lives of Others by Neel Mukherjee.

Not to be confused with the brilliant film of the same time about life in Communist East Germany, “The Lives of Others” is an unsparing dissection of the Ghoshes, a wealthy but dysfunctional Bengali family whose paper business is falling apart under the social and economic upheavals of the 1960s, compounding the mismanagement of stubborn patriarch Prafullanath.

The family members often seem like considerably more than the seventeen included in the family tree at the front of the book, since they are also referred to by their relationships, explained and listed at the back. The often tedious need to flip back and forth is increased by the glossary of Indian terms also at the end, fascinating but frustratingly incomplete.

The kaleidoscope of scenes flitting between different characters forms a potentially endless soap opera with the use of frequent flashbacks to fill in the gaps: Chhaya, the embittered sister, too “dark” and ugly to be married off, who makes it her business to spy on the rest of the household and stir up trouble with her poisonous tongue; her twin brother Priyo whose wife Purnima resents her inferior status and nags him endlessly to claim a larger role in the business; Purba, the downtrodden widow of a younger brother, who is scapegoated unfairly for his death, and confined to a cramped ground floor room with her two children, dependent on the leftovers her relatives sometimes condescend to send down to her, and so on. At times, these mainly unappealing characters seem caricatures in their snobbery, insensitive treatment of servants and callousness to those less fortunate than themselves, yet they probably provide a very accurate insight into Indian culture and attitudes. A major contrasting thread is the journal-style letters written in the first person by eldest son Adinath, who has become a communist sympathiser, and disappeared to join the Naxalites, living amongst poverty-stricken villagers with the aim of stirring them up to revolt. The identity of the intended recipient (a lover?) is not revealed until near the end, and the letters are never sent.

Although I admired this book for its vivid portrayals of inequality in India, and the in-depth psychology of the characters, I found it hard going, mainly because of the style. Dialogues often struck me as very stilted and false, although they may accurately convey a sense of “Indian English” even when the characters are, I think, speaking Hindi. The prose is by turns drowned in detail, or inflated with windy pretentiousness. Dramatic scenes are scuppered by a distracting inappropriate choice of words. I was particularly irritated by the way a boy’s budding mathematical genius provides the cue for the inclusion of mathematical theories, even notation, which must be incomprehensible to most readers. Has the author dug out some old maths notes, or culled them from a student in this field? I was reminded by contrast of Vikram Seth’s ability in “An Equal Music” to convey a sense of musicality to someone unable to read a note.

Yet, Muckerjee is capable of writing. He describes a destitute farmer’s “blunt nail” of land. He captures the effect of moonlight: “The shadows it cast looked painted: they hugged their parent objects in such a way that their inkiness leaked, as if by capillary action, back into the buildings or shrubs or humans and cloaked them in that same unreality”. I was left wishing that he had written less and honed it more ruthlessly, to achieve a masterpiece on a par with “A Fine Balance” or “A Suitable Boy”.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars


The Lives of Others

Gone Girl: Deserving each other?

⭐⭐⭐ 3 Stars


Gone Girl [DVD] [2014]

This is my review of Gone Girl [DVD] [2014].

In the media storm over his wife Amy’s disappearance on their fifth wedding anniversary, laid-back Nick fails to show the normal reactions of anxiety and distress. Has he murdered her, and if so, for what reason, or is Amy the one playing some manipulative game? Has she been emotionally warped by her artificial, hot-house childhood as the marketing symbol of the best-selling series of “Amazing Amy” books penned by her insensitive parents, always portraying a girl enjoying popularity and success not actually experienced in real life?

This is the intriguing basis of a psychological thriller which switches back and forth in time, between the viewpoints of the two main protagonists, with unpredictable twists right up to the end.

Having read the book first, usually a disadvantage for a film, I was initially disappointed by a slow-paced, lacklustre and muffled dialogue, to my British ears. Once Nick was established as a suspect, all this began to improve. Yet, in some ways, the film remains at an inevitable disadvantage compared with the medium of a book, which alternates between two clearly unreliable narrators, enabling us to get into their thought processes. Much is left to the imagination, whereas in the film you may, for instance, witness an act of which someone is accused, leaving less doubt that it has really occurred. The book is more satisfying in several other respects: the witty patter of the writing, the stronger development of the “Amazing Amy” aspect, the deeper background to Nick’s past, including the role of his dysfunctional father. In the book, the ending seems more powerful, provoking conflicting and changing reactions whereas, in the film, I did not care much either way.

The film’s strength over the book is to provide a vivid portrayal of the ghastly intrusion and distortion of the American media, where caricatures of female presenters, ageing anorexic, dyed and lacquered, mail-box-mouthed harridans stir up the fires against Nick or restore him to the fold in a gush of sentimentality. The film is often wrily amusing, with some pithy dialogues and good acting across the board. Some of the moments of greatest realism and honesty, which are therefore the most truly moving, are between Nick and his long-suffering twin sister.

Human shuttlecocks

This is my review of The Good Soldier by Ford Madox Ford.

"This is the saddest story I have ever heard" is a somewhat off-putting opening sentence. It is hard to feel very sorry for snobbish, convention-bound people who feel hard up even when holding large estates, employing servants and swanning round foreign hotels, with the lack of any occupation to give them a sense of proportion.

At first, I was even more deterred by the style, the mannered, at times almost querulous tone which I would have expected from a Victorian spinster aunt, rather than from a character I could never quite believe was an American male. Just when I was wishing I did not need to read this for a book group, I was struck by the description of the "good soldier" Ashburnham's luggage: "the profusion of his cases, all of pigskin and stamped with his initials…It must have needed a whole herd of Gaderene swine to make up his outfit". Even if this novel is not intended to be a farce (which would have saved it for me), it surely includes some sharp notes of mocking parody.

First published in 1915, this tale of two "perfect" couples whose friendship over more than a decade masks a web of deception, hypocrisy and guilt, since they are unable to keep to the moral and religious conventions to which they feel bound, has been described as "the finest French novel in the English language" and is highly regarded by some as "stylistically perfect". I accept that it is an early example of "stream of consciousness" – of the well-punctuated variety – and what has been called "literary impressionism", as the author plays games with us through his distinctly unreliable first person narrator. In the midst of his self-confessed ramblings, the American provides us with some original, often vicious insights, belying his claimed lack of observation bordering on stupidity over what is really going on under his nose – although is he really as passive in the affair as he makes out? He shifts back and forth in time, revisiting scenes to peel off yet more layers to reveal that each incident was not quite as he implied or stated earlier, or to show how it might appear differently to the various characters concerned. Although he does this quite skilfully, providing a few unexpected shocks on the way, there is a good deal of repetition of details. A fairly thin story seems overlong, and the heavy emphasis on telling the reader at great length what to think – even if this gets contradicted at times – is less satisfying than the style we have come to prefer – showing events for us to draw differing conclusions.

Perhaps this is worth reading as an early twentieth century classic, but I cannot say I really enjoyed it. Arnold Bennet, who lived at the same time as Ford Madox Ford, creates for me a much more real past peopled with more convincing complex characters over whom it is easier to feel moved.

⭐⭐⭐ 3 Stars

The Good Soldier

Pride – A reminder to question our values

This is my review of Pride [DVD] (2014).

Although I remember the bitterness and violence of the 1984 Miners’ Strike, the role of a gay and lesbian group in supporting them, and the miners’ act of gratitude in leading the 1985 Gay Pride march completely passed me by. This piece of recent history forms the dramatic background to the lives of ordinary individuals including a feisty young Irish gay who identifies with the miners’ cause when he sees them being vilified, and the catering student struggling to come to terms with the gayness he is concealing from his conventional family.

This uplifting film manages to be both funny about prejudice, using humour to debunk it, yet poignant in its coverage of the fear of AIDs and the grim awareness of the frequent shortness of a gay life in the 1980s. Scenes of a mining community under pressure in the breath-taking beauty of the Welsh valleys made me question the sense and morality of the rapid destruction of the coal industry in Britain. Reminders of worker solidarity made me think how skewed our values have become, as we privatise public sector services, cut the benefits of the poor to pay off deficits caused by feather-bedded bankers, and subject ourselves to the jargon of performance management and marketing.

The film is honest in showing the bickering and division, as gay men display a macho indifference to the lesbians’ demands for recognition, and the leaders of the pride march want to play down the political angle after the failure of the miners’ strike. A few characters are stereotypes and the rapid scene changes reduce some plot details to sound-bites which could make the situation hard to follow for those too young to have lived through the crisis. A few scenes fall short, such as the unlikely abortive assault on a miners’ social event by the two sons of the rampantly homophobic committee member,but the acting is mostly very convincing, with the added power of the music – one of the most moving scenes is when, starting with a lone voice, a roomful of miners’ families rise to their feet in their common knowledge of the song of solidarity, “Bread and Roses”. We must have bread, but we still need a few roses in life.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars


Pride [DVD] (2014)

Meaning at your fingertips

This is my review of Collins English to French (One Way) Dictionary & Grammar (Collins Dictionary and Grammar) by HarperCollins Publishers.

Although I accept the need for a two way version, I found this extremely inexpensive English to French dictionary very useful in kindle format during a recent trip to France. It proved a convenient and very compact way of checking out words I wished to use or to cope with unfamiliar terms in newspaper and magazine articles. I liked the way it goes beyond individual words to include idioms. This is useful for occasions when you do not have online access or the opportunity to use a mammoth bound dictionary.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

Collins English to French (One Way) Dictionary & Grammar (Collins Dictionary and Grammar)

The dangers of making the world a safer place

This is my review of A Most Wanted Man [DVD].

With the German authorities determined that the port of Hamburg should not be a seedbed of Islamic terrorism as it was for 9/11, the Americans and Russians are equally keen to take a hard line when Chechen dissident Issa Karpov turns up in the city. Maverick spymaster Günther Backmann, played by Seymour Hoffmann in one of his last roles, is determined to use Karpov as what he sees as a minnow to catch the barracuda of a Islamic benefactor who is suspected of siphoning off money for military purposes. Karpov's past and his current motives remain unclear, but how far can anyone be trusted?

As is usually the case, Le Carré's work requires total concentration, giving too little time to pin down possible flaws, or catch the answers to the questions which surface after the event. Yet, this film seems to me relatively clear, working towards a dramatic conclusion, which makes the mistake of dragging on just a minute or two too long. The ready assumption is that Karpov is "the most wanted man" but perhaps it is Backmann who manages to rile too many people.

The quality of acting of the main players is consistently high and mercifully audible, with generally sharp and engaging dialogues. Seymour Hoffmann stands out in his portrayal of a shambling yet astute character, capable of ruthless manipulation, perhaps a little too arrogant for his own good, yet displaying at times a surprising empathy for those he uses as pawns. This makes Hoffmann's premature death even more of a poignant waste.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

A Most Wanted Man [DVD]

Santa Claus with odd socks

This is my review of A House of Knives: Breen & Tozer 2 (Breen and Tozer) by William Shaw.

This picks up the plot straight from end of "A Song from Dead Lips" (also titled "She's leaving home") with a limited recap to help those who have not previously read the first book in the trilogy featuring DS Breen, which I would recommend to get the most out of this story.

The discovery of a corpse following a domestic gas explosion reminds Breen of an unresolved case which haunted him in the previous novel. As before, this is tightly plotted, alternating fast-paced action with a sense of the frustration, even tedium, of criminal investigations. Breen is developing as a character, moving beyond being stereotypically dysfunctional to proving himself a methodical and tenacious operator, a decent, thoughtful even sensitive man – so that it is hard to understand how he tolerates the corruption and crassness of his work colleagues.

What marks this series out is the portrayal of the late sixties. It is fascinating to be reminded of or perhaps discover for the first time what this period was like – the now jaw-dropping lack of any awareness of equality, the smoke-ridden offices, the gulf between the old and young, as free love, hippiedom and drugs took hold, the embrace of modern art by a wealthy few, perhaps only to prove themselves followers of fashion, the brew of idealism, brutalism and corruption in the form of concrete flyovers and tower blocks, heralded as solutions for congestion and slum clearance without anyone fully considering the adverse effects. William Shaw makes some interesting points, such as that the legal change preventing drug addicts from obtaining drugs like heroin from their GPs merely pushed them into the hands of dealers, often selling far less pure and so more deadly substances.

Shaw's style is deceptively simple and direct. I like his often funny Pinterish dialogues in which several conversations are being carried on at once. He is good at poignancy, wry humour and unexpected twists, but some of the potentially most dramatic moments lack a certain tension and are not quite convincing, like the final denouement which serves mainly as an opportunity to provide the reader with details which should mostly have been grasped already. This comment sets the bar high for an otherwise very talented writer. I accept that some very dangerous situations may feel oddly banal at times, which may be what he wishes to convey. Very occasionally there seems to be a small glitch suggesting a lack of thorough editing, and the title is clearly aimed at ghoulish attraction of readers rather than relevance to the story. Although these books lend themselves to film adaptations, one of the strongest aspects will be lost in the process, namely Breen's chains of thought, his reactions and sensitive introspection.

Overall, I recommend this series and will make a point of reading the last of the trilogy – which may not be the end of Breen and his unconventional sidekick Tozer.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

A House of Knives: Breen & Tozer 2 (Breen and Tozer)

Where fancy is bred

This is my review of The Woman in the Picture by Katharine McMahon.

In this sequel to "The Crimson Rooms", we encounter again Evelyn, the determined young woman who flouted convention after the First World War to train as a solicitor in London. Set against the background of the 1926 General Strike, a damp squib of an event which may account for its somewhat wooden treatment here, the book's compelling quality comes from the author's ability to create a sense of period and place and develop the main characters as Evelyn is caught up in a couple of cases which illustrate the abuse of two women at very different levels in society. In particular, we understand Evelyn's changing moods, the poignancy of the continual reminders of the brother killed in the war, to whom she was deeply attached, and her dilemma as to whether, learning from her grandmother's experience, she should be ruled by her passionate heart or her pragmatic head, by physical attraction or a sense of trust and respect when it comes to choosing a partner. It seems too much of a coincidence that Evelyn's former lover Nicholas appears on the scene only to become involved in the two main cases on which Evelyn is working, but this is of course necessary for the plot.

This story treads a fine line between romantic and literary fiction, which may leave dissatisfied both categories of mostly likely female reader. It is well-written with a sound structure, but I have a few reservations. Although the exchanges in court are gripping, I was surprised by the conversational way prosecution and defence are allowed to interrupt each other. Even more so, whether in a paternity case held in camera or during interviews with Evelyn, the main parties seem remarkably willing to speak frankly about intimate matters without the kind of embarrassed prevarication one would expect. Regardless of social position, gender or personality, the characters tend to speak with the same voice. The way so many strangers seem to know about Evelyn's aborted love affair with Nicholas and feel free to comment on it also seems unlikely. Evelyn's nervous and demanding mother undergoes a rather rapid personality change.

I may have missed something but realise that I do not understand the choice of title. The current front cover of a 1920s vamp with come-hither blue eyes, whose cigarette should surely be in a holder, also gives a false and trivialising impression of the book.

Despite these points, I recommend this as a "good read" with an ending sufficiently open to pave the way for yet another novel on Evelyn, part blue-stocking, part unconscious femme fatale.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

The Woman in the Picture

A saga of crocodiles animal and human

This is my review of Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles (LITT.GENERALE) (French Edition) by Katherine Pancol.

Lacking in self-esteem, overweight, frumpy and only happy when immersed in research of her beloved C12 history, Josephine musters the anger to send packing her charming but philandering and unemployed dreamer of a husband Antoine. Desperate for money to pay the bills, she agrees to a piece of deception to feed the vanity of her beautiful, wealthy but bored elder sister Iris who has pretended to an admiring editor that she is writing a book. Josephine will produce a novel set, of course, in the C12 and Iris will claim authorship and market it.

This French soap opera is often too tongue in cheek or over-the-top to be taken very seriously, particularly when, at the time of writing this, truth is more ludicrous than fiction in the form of a scorned former First Lady's revenge kiss-and-tell book on a serving President Hollande. The strongest passages are Josephine's relations with her sister and her two daughers, in particular the adolescent Hortense: beautiful, immature and manipulative as her Aunt Iris yet also chilling in her precocious insights. Antoine's attempt to make a living managing a crocodile farm (hence the title) in Africa is a quirky thread which could have been developed more.

The book is too long. Some threads are quite tedious, such as the content of Josephine's novel, which would surely never have been such a resounding success judging by the descriptions. Some of the male love interest is unconvincing – the women are in general made of sterner stuff than the men. A plot-line involving the mystery in the life of Josephine's friend Shirley proves to be utterly implausible and crass. Despite these flaws, and against my better judgement, I found much of the story entertaining, often funny yet sufficiently poignant to make one care about the fate of the main characters, apart from the shamelessly stereotyped villains like Josephine's appalling mother, nicknamed "Toothpick" by her put-upon husband's tart-with-a-heart mistress, Josiane. The final scene is effective, paving the way for future novels.

This is worth reading for the French idioms and current slang, although I believe that the English translation is full of Americanisms likely to detract from the authentic French flavour which adds to the book's appeal.

⭐⭐⭐⭐ 4 Stars

Les Yeux jaunes des crocodiles (LITT.GENERALE) (French Edition)