La Symphonie Pastorale – Andre Gide

La Symphonie Pastorale was written in 1919. The copy that I own also contained a second story, Isabelle which complemented the original story perfectly. Both were suffused with longing, loss and tragic disappointment but both were beautifully written (and translated) despite the darkness of their themes.

The title story is about a pastor who, upon attending the bedside of a dying woman, discovers her blind daughter – illiterate, unsocialised and terrified cowering nearby. He brings the girl home, to the resentment of his wife, and proceeds to care for her, educate her and bring her up surrounded by his cocoon of moral teachings and beliefs. Gertrude, despite her blindness, learns to ’see’ through his teaching and particularly through her introduction to music. Time passes, the pastor’s wife grows ever more angry, and slowly but surely, the feelings of the pastor shift from their paternal beginnings.

The tragedy occurs when Gertrude is finally given back her sight through an operation and discovers that the world isn’t as beautiful as she had imagined, and also discovers the feelings of the pastor towards her (unreciprocated) and the loss of the man she had loved – Jacques, the pastor’s son, who had been sent away by his father so he didn’t have to share Gertrude’s affection. Whether romantic affectation or not, there was really no other ending to this story than the one posited – the girl commits suicide, leaving everyone lost, broken and irrepairably betrayed.

Isabelle, written some years before La Symphonie Pastorale also tells the story of longing and disappointment when that longing is finally fulfilled. In this story, the protagonist falls in love with a picture of an absent daughter in a house in which he is staying. His longing for her grows and grows until he finally meets her, and realises that she is human, imperfect and less than the ideal he had built of her. In some ways I found this story even more tragic than the first – not because of the loss felt by the young man but because the object of his affection was never ever going to live up to his ideal. In such a situation, there is only ever going to be unhappiness.

Both stories exquisitely examined human emotion and the dire trouble humans find themselves in when the emotions of two people are not parallel. All of Gide’s characters were in this uncomfortable place – whether it was the pastor’s love, Jacques longing or the pastor’s wife’s sense of rejection. The author paints a cruel world where each person is separate from all others, and no matter how hard they wish or try, they cannot form a connection. And the fault for this is not with the other person – it is with their own emotions, selfishness and desires. 

Rating: 8/10
Publisher: Penguin Books
Year: 1963
Date Finished:  March 2009
Pages: 170

The Hidden – Tobias Hill

Life has gone somewhat wrong for Ben Mercer. His wife has left him for a man who was their archaeology professor at university, taking his daughter and any plans for a future he may have had. Ben is aware that this is something that he invited – through his own behaviour towards her and the world in general. He escapes to Greece, not knowing where he is headed but finding himself drawn there thanks to his own archeological profession and a hope that if he runs far enough, the pain might go away.

Whilst he is killing time, working in a filthy back-street restaurant removed from the tourist district in Athens, Ebehard, a university collegue inexplicably shows up for a meal. Although they had never been close, Ben speaks to him and gleans that he is involved in a dig. That dig is searching for artefacts from ancient Sparta. Although he isn’t invited, Ben realises that that is what he was looking for. He applies for a position, and wins a place on the dig. Thus begins what he first sees as redemption and release, but what turns into a nightmare for Ben as he finds himself caught up with something he can’t escape from, and wants no part in.

There are two words I would use to describe this book. Gripping and poetic.

As a thriller, it achieved what it set out to do. Although saying a novel is atmospheric is somewhat cliched, the tension, emotion and sense of ‘being on the outside’ was palpable throughout this book.  Ben never really belongs with the group he meets on the dig in Sparta, and the author has managed to convey that sense even when the words suggested that he had been accepted and fitted in. I don’t know whether I felt that sense of being on the outside so clearly because I had experienced it in my life before, or because the author’s skill with words was such that you couldn’t avoid it. I suspect it is a combination of both. The climax to the book is breathtaking. As a reader, you feel as out on a limb as the protagonist. You are kept away from the secret for as long as Ben is, and you aren’t given any hint until he is faced with it in all of its horror.

Yet throughout, the tension is created in language that is beautifully poetic. Indeed, at times the paragraphs read like poetry rather than prose which, I think, helped create the atmosphere. I was incredibly impressed by this novel – Tobias Hill is an author with a true gift of language.

Rating: 9/10
ISBN: 978-0-571-21838-7
Publisher: Faber and Faber
Year: 2009
Date Finished: 14 February 2009
Pages: 352

The Time Has Come…

Most of you would probably notice that I have been less diligent with my book blog recently than I have been in the past. I always post reviews for books I have been asked to read and review on time, whether for virtual book tours or when I have been specifically asked by a book publicist. But with my other reading (of which I have been doing a lot) I seem to have let my writing slip. I have mentioned this before, but I thought I would make a public pledge which might get me moving. I keep this blog as a record of what I have read and to share my thoughts and recommendations about everything I read. If I don’t post my thoughts or record what I have read then I am sort of missing my whole point.

So…

I am setting myself a schedule to review all of the books that I have finished but not yet written. And, I am making that schedule very public (so you can all hold me to account). I find it tough to write more than one review a day, so I will try and be reasonably kind on myself, but here is the list with the date I am going to post the review after each book:

The Hidden by Tobias Hill – 27 May 2009
La Symphonie Pastorale by Andre Gide – 28 May 2009
The Death Maze by Ariana Franklin – 29 May 2009
Fear of Flying by Erica Jong – 2 June 2009
Best Intentions by Emily Listfield – 3 June 2009 (a requested review. I haven’t quite finished the book yet, so if I finish it sooner, I will post this sooner) 
The Outcast by  Sadie Jones – 5 June 2009
Case Histories by Kate Atkinson – 6 June 2009
A Certain Justice by PD James – 7 June 2009
The Story of Lucy Gault by William Trevor – 9 June 2009
The Black Tower by PD James – 10 June 2009
The Murder Room by PD James – 10 June 2009

That’s quite a list! And, of course, I am still reading. But I’ll link to the review as I go.

Watch this blog space…

The Genie in Your Genes – Dawson Church

This book was written to lay out a theory of Epigenetic medicine, a term I had never come across despite my fascination with science.  A search on the internet for the term brings up quite a few references to this book, so I turned to it to find an explanation. The general thesis of the book is that humans have the ability to effectively ‘change their genes’ through their own thoughts, behaviours and environment. Dawson Church referenced many studies and examined a great deal of previous research on this topic, which gives the book both substance and gravity. The author doesn’t just dump the studies into the chapters and baffle you with scientific jargon. He explains his theories clearly and tries to lay out as much evidence as he can in support of it.

Of course, every scientific study can be interpreted in different ways, and I did find some of Church’s interpretations surprising. There were times I felt he dismissed studies which perhaps negated his thesis in ways that weren’t convincing, and emphasised studies which were perhaps a little more tenuous. The one thing I have gained out of reading this book is an enormous list of studies that I want to go and look up. If there is one thing I have learnt in my fascination with the scientific method is that you need to be skeptical and if something sounds like it needs to be questioned, then question it. 

I also found myself somewhat turned off by the religious and moralistic overtones which seemed to go through the book. The author used more hyperbole than most popular science writers and I know that when something is touted as a ‘miracle’, a flag should go up to be a little cautious. I have done a lot of reading about science and the scientific method and although my understanding of genetics is limited to what I learnt at school as well as reading Dawkins, I found myself wondering about what the author’s agenda was. 

There is no doubt that the hypothesis that he placed was fascinating – it would be truly incredible (and paradigm shifting in many ways) if it really were possible for each one of us to ‘change our genes’ simply through thought, belief and circumstance. I would have liked to see a testimonal from a geneticist or biologist at the beginning of this book which would have convinced me more. Most of the testimonials were from professionals within the same fields of ‘Soul Medicine’ and various researchers of spiritual energy. I, sadly, am not convinced by either of these fields and so I found the testimonials carried very little weight for me.

I think this book would most definitely appeal to someone of a similar religious or spiritual bent to the author. As an atheist, I was unconvinced by the arguments that my life could be better if I shared a strong and spiritual marriage, prayed and was prayed for and attended church regularly. By all means, if I were reading a book on morals and the spirit then I would expect this, but this was purported to be a scientfic study. In that respect I felt somewhat cheated – I don’t expect a science book to be instructing me morally. I have no issue whatsoever with anyone’s individual moral agenda. I live my own moral and very happy life free from the spiritual aspects which this book expounded. I am afraid that as a result, I just couldn’t come to grips with it.

They Plotted Revenge Against America – Abe F. March

I started reading this book the day before the recent swine flu scare hit Europe. It was pretty ironic timing, as Abe F. March’s novel, They Plotted Revenge Against Amercia tells the story of a group of young Palestinians who, having cruelly lost their entire families in the continuing battle between US-supported Israel and Palestine, decide to join an organisation to seek revenge. That revenge was to take the form of a virus, distributed in both the fish and poultry industries in the United States which would result in hundreds of thousands dying of flu. Of course, I was pretty much unmoved by the swine flu hysteria which the newspapers were trying to incite here, but I found the whole book quite timely.

March clearly knows about the Middle East. His biography indicates that he had worked there and it therefore made sense how he understood the reality of the battle. Sadly, we are all so influenced by the media, we are led to believe what the main media outlets want us to believe. You don’t have to read too far to start to recognise that Israel’s actions are often brutal and unjustified, and America itself hasn’t behaved in a particularly exemplary fashion over the past decades either. This is very obviously March’s viewpoint, and it came out very clearly throughout this book.

On the plus side, I was taken by the book to the extent that I had to keep turning the pages to see what happened. Spoiler alert: it is fascinating how the attitudes of the groups of young Palestinians change as they progress in the mission, particular as they themselves discover love, and start to realise that most people in the United States aren’t malicious – they are merely completely ignorant about what is really happening in the Middle East, and therefore regurgitate what their politicians feed to them. Although the teams start with a determined and unmovable sense of vengeance, even the leaders find that their resolve begins to slip as the reality of what they are doing sinks in. The slaughter of innocents is not atoned for by the slaughter of more innocents, and several of the teams begin to see that only through education and outreach can real change occur.

However, my biggest problem with this book was the style in which is was written. Right from the outset, it felt completely detached. Although I was interested in the characters, none of them felt completely human to me. The character development was shallow and I struggled to feel as they felt. This was highlighted by the awkwardness with which love and sex was described and I felt that perhaps the author ought to have left it out as it seemed clear he wasn’t comfortable with that aspect of the story. The author’s strength was in his knowledge of the political situation, and the ideas behind it. I could determine his own feelings for the tragedy of the Middle East, but there were times that the story seemed like a shadow puppet show masking the depth of feeling that the author felt towards the actual subject of the novel.

I spent quite a lot of time thinking about it, wondering whether perhaps it would have been better if the book had been written as a non-fiction, but I couldn’t see how. I understand that the growing understanding between cultures could only be portrayed through fiction because, sadly, this simply isn’t a reality yet. But for a writer who clearly has a lot to say and a lot of passion, the fictional format didn’t quite work for me.

Nevertheless it was a page turner, and it was left hanging which forced me to think about the story long after I had finished it. That alone helps it to be successful. That and the fact that I am now seeking out other, more erudite opinions on the Middle East crisis than the daily newspapers. The one point that came out of They Plotted Revenge which everyone should heed is the fact that only through education and understanding have we any hope of finding a solution. Until then, more innocent people are going to die.

Publisher: All Things That Matter Press
ISBN: 0-9822722-2-7
Date: 2009
Date Finished: 7 May 2009
Pages: 244

Making Light of Being Heavy – Kandy Siahaya

Obesity is so frequently hailed as a ‘problem’ and a ‘disaster for the country’ in the newspapers nowadays that it is no surprise that we assume that every overweight person is just one more statistic whose life will be cut short because their heart will give out by the time they are 20, and in the short years they are alive they will be so miserably unhappy that they will do nothing but console themselves with excessive amounts of food. As many of you who read my various blogs will know, I am not a particular fan of newspapers or the mainstream media in general, and I do look at these kind of claims with a healthy dose of skepticism, but it is quite rare to come across an opposing view.

But an opposing view is what Kandy Siahaya is seeking to put forward in this little book. Kandy is one of the people that the newspapers like to call ‘morbidly obese’ (a particularly unpleasant label, if you want my opinion) but not only is she fine with it, she also has a sense of humour and the ability to laugh about it. Her introductory warning is that this book might cause offence if you are sensitive about people joking about fat, weight or weight gain. She suggests that if this describes you, you probably ought to put the book down. I smiled at that, and anticipated more humour.

I applaud Kandy for settling down to write this book. I could tell that it was a labour of love for her, and I could tell that she was very happy to make people think about their own preconceptions. I am one of the ‘thin people’ that she knows will read the book, but even so I have had my share of weight related angst and diet experience so I could still relate to what she said. Being overweight is very much relative in my opinion. Medicine must place people into categories as it is the only way it can successfully manage an enormous population, but no one really fits perfectly into the category within which we are supposed to fall. Fat and healthy and happy to me seems a far better option than thin and ill and unhappy and Kandy worked hard to reinforce that fact.

My criticism of the book comes from the fact that I felt it didn’t have enough structure to it. Each chapter was interesting in and of itself, but I felt there could have been more of a natural path – a beginning, middle and end. I also wanted to know more – I wanted to hear more of the author’s experiences, and discover more that she had learnt throughout her life. I felt when I had finished that I had really only just scratched the surface, there wasn’t quite enough substance and not quite as much humour as I would have hoped. There were also a few editing issues that I picked up, but then (as many of you also know about me) I am a bit of a pedant when it comes to grammar and punctuation.

Overall this was an enjoyable and quick little read, touching on a subject in a light-hearted way which many people would shy away from as being politically incorrect or potentially offensive. Food is without doubt one of the greatest pleasures in life and everyone should be allowed to enjoy it without scorn of their fellow man. The fact that we come in different shapes and sizes cannot be taken as a blanket indicator of whether we are a good or bad person with self control or no self control. Making Light of Being Heavy is a step towards confirming that.

Publisher: Self-Published
ISBN: 978-1-4276-3954-7
Date: 2006
Date Finished: 2 May 2009
Pages: 90

The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet – Reif Larsen

Uncorrected proof copies of a novel can be of varying quality. Some I have received have had paper covers (although the shabby appearance belied the quality of the writing within). Others I have received looked no different to what I imagine the finished product would look like, although the illustrations may have been blurred or left out altogether. When I received my copy of The Selected Works of T.S.Spivet, I opened up what could only be described as a beautifully produced book, complete with exquisite margin drawings and copious notes. My curiosity was definitely piqued, and I couldn’t wait to sit down with the book and get started.

Strangely enough, when I had read the publicity material for this book, I had immediately formed a picture of T.S. Spivet. In my mind he was an explorer, an illustrator and a grown man. When I met T.S. Spivet for real, he was the first two of these things, but in the body of a 12 year old boy. But T.S. was no ordinary 12 year old. Despite having grown up on a ranch in Montana, his skill at map making and drawing, as well as his scientific mind meant that soon after we meet him, he discovers that he has won a prestigious award from the Smithsonian and, in order to accept it, must present himself in Washington D.C. the following Thursday.

And thus his adventure begins.

I was charmed by T.S. The author captured a moment in the life of the protagonist which was still so childish, and yet was laced by a budding maturity. This meant that T.S. spoke to me as an adult, but would still speak to a child just as effectively.  The book is an account of his journey to Washington on a freight train, his discovery of an adult world which he doesn’t fully understand, as well as his own self-discovery in coming to terms with the death of his younger brother, his perceived rejection by his father and his own gifts.  Parallel to his own story, T.S. learns the story of his grandmother, herself a gifted scientist in an age when women’s academic abilities were not taken seriously, and through that he learns about the struggle of not belonging, and how that can ultimately lead you away from your own talents.

If it were just the story without the accompanying illustrations, this book would have lost something. I think I might have struggled with some of the flights of fancy into which it went. There were times I couldn’t decide whether this books was supposed to be a fantasy (with wormholes in the middle of America into which trains disappear), or an observation of reality. I finally came to the conclusion that this was reality for a 12 year old – and that reality is a combination of wormholes, talking winnebagos and secret societies, big cities, Macdonalds and the desperate need to be loved. When I had settled with that I was able to fully suspend my disbelief and take the journey with T.S. The little maps, pictures and drawings which litter the pages emphasise how the world appears through T.S.’s eyes. He helped me to start noticing tiny things again – things which, when you enter the adult world, blur into normality and become insiginificant in the day to day push to survive.

My biggest issue did come from the apparent incongruity between T.S.’s parents – his mother, herself a scientist without any apparent domestic ability somehow meets and stays with his father, a cowboy and ranchman who’s life partially emulates the Westerns he watches so religiously. Would two people like that come together? I couldn’t work out how or why. Although T.S. was as mystified as I was as he states in one of the margin notes early on in the book. The story of T.S.’s grandmother, Emma, goes some way towards answering the question but I never felt fully satisfied, just as I didn’t feel fully satisfied with how one so young could have such an in depth knowledge of science. But that was all part of the fantasy of the novel, so I didn’t let it worry me too much.

The author touches elegantly upon the Evolution/Creationism debate which appears to be so prominent in the United States. I liked how he introduced the beauty and logic of science in a way which was neither confrontational nor obvious. I believe that novels like this will go much further in convincing people than hard scientific fact because they pose no threat. This novel provides that middle ground between science and people’s personal faith which seems to be ignored to a great extent (from my limited understanding) in the US. If for no other reason, The Selected Works of T.S. Spivet should be regarded as an important contribution to literature, and one that is timely and necessary.

I will go back to this book again and again, even if it is just to examine the drawings in more detail, or once again smile at T.S.’s thoughts and asides. It is a wonderful addition to my library and I was honoured to be given the opportunity to review it. It is a fantastic first novel and a recommended read.

You can find out more about the book and the author at http://www.tsspivet.com/

Rating: 9/10
ISBN: 9781846552786 
Publisher: Harvill Secker
Year: 2009
Date Finished: 22 April 2009
Pages: 375

The Bethlehem Murders – Matt Rees

The truly wonderful thing about reading fiction is that it can transport you to places that you might otherwise never go to, and give you an insight into a culture, a country or a conflict which you simply cannot gain if you just read the news. The Bethlehem Murders is a murder mystery set in modern day Palestine, with a backdrop of violence, injustice and religious and political unrest. You might wonder how, in a region which sees death and destruction on a daily basis, one particular murder could become an issue. But war should not remove humanity, and when people are killed without explanation or reason, it is absolutely correct that it should be investigated and the perpertrators should be caught.

The main character and unwilling detective in this novel is Omar Yussef. Yussef is angered and dissillusioned by what has happened to his homeland. An academic and peaceful man, before Israel began it’s strong arm tactics and before militarism was glorified above all else, he had had friends from all religions and all backgrounds. Although he works as a teacher, his liberalism is catching up with him at the time that the events of this novel occur.

Yussef is drawn into political events when one of his former students, George – a Christian and a good man – is arrested. Yussef knows that although George will have a trial, he is doomed to die. Finally, Yussef’s outrage with his country and his countrymen force him to do something, and he becomes embroiled in a dangerous game of politics. When another of his students – an innocent girl, is brutally murdered, Yussef nearly loses hope, but his perseverance drives him on to solve the crimes, and ultimately save himself and his family as chaos seems to hit.

I liked the character of Yussef, although he irritated me slightly. I admired his bloody-minded determination to find out what was happening, in spite of his age and lack of fitness, but at the same time it annoyed me. Maybe I have been spoilt by the brilliance of Adam Dalgleish, the sharpness of Tempe Brennan and the grumpy intelligence of Morse, so Omar Yussef just wasn’t a hero for me. Nevertheless, the story was gripping, and the window on a world that I barely know about. Granted, it only gave ‘one side’ of the conflict, although I can’t help but sympathise with the plight of the Palestinians. But if these were the kind of people Matt Rees encountered when he was there, then they certainly have an indomitable spirit.

Rating: 7/10
ISBN: 978-1843545927
Publisher: Atlantic Books
Year: 2007
Date Finished: 24 February 2009
Pages: 272

Saffron Dreams – Shaila Abdullah

If your husband, who is a waiter in the Window on the World Restaurant in one of the Twin Towers,  is killed during the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York, you would have every right to be angry at the perpetrators. You would have every right to hate them. You would have every right to express your anguish of your pain and loss. But if your husband, who is a waiter in the Window on the World Restaurant, is killed during the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre in New York and you and he are Muslims from Pakistan, does that mean you no longer have that right? Does that mean you lose your status as a victim and you lose your right to mourn? This is one of the themes that Shaila Abdullah explores in Saffron Dreams, a thought provoking and emotional story of one woman’s survival through just this scenario.

Arissa Illahi came from a well off family in Pakistan, with a kind father and a distant, promiscuous and careless mother. She grows up adhering to tradition to an extent, but not in the strict way that we are led to believe everyone who is ‘other’ conforms to. Her marriage is still arranged, but it is arranged with Faizan – a man she met only briefly in a library in New York, but who fell in love with her and whom she fell in love with. The marriage was a good one. The couple lived in New York just like the multitude of other diasporas, getting on with their lives and planning their futures.

Until that day. Arissa – pregnant with their first child – has her life torn to shreds over the space of a few hours as her husband, who was working as a waiter while he completed his novel, becomes one of the thousands of victims of the 9/11 attacks. His body is never found, just like so many others. But while he disappears, Arissa is suddenly faced with the loss of everything she loved and a life ahead of her. When Raian is born, he is severely disabled. As she learns to care for her child, and overcome her loss, the character grows in ways which are both heroic and normal. Of course they are. She is a human with a heart and needs and feeling just like me. In the circumstances, would I not do the same?

Of course, this process is made all the more difficult by the blind prejudice which is immediately flung towards anyone who looked remotely alien by the grieving people of New York. It is such a tragic part of human nature that when we suffer tragedy, we look to blame someone. Even if that someone has suffered the same tragedy, we try to repair our own hearts by directing our anger at others. At one point, Arissa is asked by a journlist how she feels seeing her husband was killed by ‘her own people’. The narrow minded, stereotyping in that comment was inconsiderate beyond belief. Nobody likes the havoc that is wreaked by most fundamentalist religions, but that doesn’t mean that every single person who practices (or even doesn’t practice) that religion should be tarred with the same brush. Why, as humans, do we have to box people up into categories. You wear a veil, therefore you are a terrorist. You wear a cross, therefore you are a homosexual hating bigot. You don’t wear anything, therefore you are an immoral reprobate. How about you wear what you choose, and you are a human being, just like me?

As anyone who has read this blog will know, I have read several other books about the situation of Muslim women, particularly in Afghanistan. You will know how angry they make me as to me, every woman deserves respect, equal treatment, choice and a life free of violence and oppression. It means that I am wont to stereotype as well, so I found this book even more fulfilling because it made me stop and think. I am just as guilty of tarring everyone with the same brush as the next person. Meeting Arissa, I hope it will nudge me one step closer to stopping that.

This book examines the cultural mix as Arissa struggles to find equilibrium. Raian, so physically damaged himself, is her shining light and the hope and strength she needs to keep going. And through Raian she comes to realise that she can survive, she will manage and she can find happiness with herself again. It is a wonderfully uplifting story of struggle and survival, and yet another necessary work of fiction. Saffron Dreams is one of the reasons that fiction is so powerful. It helps everyone to understand a different life and a different point of view, and makes people stop for a moment and look outside of the walls within which they live. It is through fiction that you get the opportunity to touch a life which may seem alien and through touching it, realise that it has many similarities to your own.

Shaila Abdullah has also written a book a short stories about women in Pakistan. When I had to re-buy this book, I used it as an opportunity to also purchase her first book. After finishing this one, her short stories have found there way on to by to-be-read-soon pile so look out for the review of that one shortly.

ISBN: 978-1-932690-73-6
Publisher: Modern History Press
Year: 2009
Date Finished: 22 March 2009
Pages: 232

Beat The Reaper – Josh Bazell

A single word came to my head when I finished this book.

Wow.

What a ride. This was a clever combination of graphic violence, black humour, thrills and empathy and it was a story which just kept you on the edge of your seat. For a first novel, it is an explosion from an author who has a fantastic way with words, the ability to craft strong characters and a knack for painting an image which is sometimes too much for the imagination to bear.

The story is about Peter Brown, a doctor working at a frenetically busy New York hospital. The book opens with him getting mugged. But his ability not just to stop the mugger but to literally put him in the hospital suggests that Peter isn’t just your average registrar. Despite verging on exhaustion from the demanding hours of his job, there is a sharpness about him which draws you in. It soon emerges that Peter’s past life is far darker than anyone he works with could have imagined. When he enters the room of a man with terminal cancer and realises that he is recognised, his cover starts to slip. As a hit man for the mob in his previous life, he is in the hospital on witness protection. This guy means certain death to Peter. If Peter allows him to die under his watch, the alarm will have rung and all of those shadows of his past who want to see him dead will be coming for him.

Thus begins a breathless story which jumps from Peter’s musings over the past and what got him to this point and the actual events he is trying to survive through. When put against the backdrop of a busy hospital, as a reader you feel swept along with the sheer pace of this novel. Page turner isn’t a fair description – I was almost ripping at them to see what happened next.

What Josh Bazell has achieved so well in my opinion is the creation of the character of Peter who had such a streak of evil through him and was nevertheless good and sympathetic. It didn’t seem to matter to me what he had done – I wanted him to survive. He was trapped in the moral dilemma of his life, but in it he had allowed himself to truly love someone, as well as question what was right and wrong with the purpose of protecting others from the evil under which he operated. He was the epitome of a hero, but one who was so completely human that his actions made all the more impact. This impression of Peter was made stronger by the fact the book was written in the first person, so you had an intimate relationship with Peter as he fought to keep what he had now gained. I asked Josh how he had managed to paint such a contrast of good an evil in Peter. Josh told me that Peter demonstrated how evil can come so easily to people – especially to Peter – and yet he still battled morally with what he was doing. Josh said that this was something which we could all relate to as humans – a point I completely agree with. Most of us may not exercise the level of evil that Peter was, but if we were pushed to it, how closely would we go? It is an interesting question.

The graphic descriptions in this book really made me cringe at times and stayed in my head even after I had put the book down. This level of violence could put off a reader who was faint at heart, but I felt it fitted with the whole theme and pace of the book. There is no painting over the violence of the mob. In fact, in another question I posed to Josh I asked him how much research he had done about the mob in writing this book and he replied

“I did a fair amount of research, but the thing that felt important to get right was the basis of the mob’s success, which is bone-simple willingness to do awful things to people who work for a living in order to take their money.  A lot of what I was seeing in fictional representations of the mob was victimless crimes and loyalty gained through beneficence.  I suspected the mafia wasn’t really into either of those things, and the facts are out there:  it isn’t.”

The criminal activity associated with the mob is neither romantic nor glamorous. The level of violence is very real, which once again gave this book the quality of a story which could have happened.

I was pleased to discover that Josh is in the midst of writing his next novel, and that Peter will figure in it again. I found myself wanting so much to know what happened to him after the events in Beat the Reaper were over that I couldn’t help but ask. You know an author has done something good when you keep returning to a character and wondering over them in your mind, days or weeks after you have put the book down. I will be glad to see him again.

The final question of Josh was to ask what his plans for the future were. His answer? “Get a life”.

Actually, Josh, I would rather you didn’t if it means you can keep producing novels as good as this one. You can get a life after that.

Rating: 9/10
ISBN: 9780434019236
Publisher: William Heinemann
Date: 2009
Date Finished: 6 March 2009
Pages: 307