Booth's work was recommended to me by friends and I can see why others enjoy his style but it's not really my "cup of tea". To me it seems a book for those who wish to travel vicariously to Italy through Booth's words. I won't go into the plot so as to not reveal anything but frankly there's not much plot to discuss. We get deep, vivid descriptions of the village where the protagonist lives, his apartment, his landlady. We get lengthy descriptions of his meals and the brothel he frequents. We learn more about the piazzas near his village than we do about any single character. My issue is that most of this information has no bearing on the events of the novel.
If that kind of immersion engages you this is a great novel. Frankly, I was looking for a bit more plot and intrigue. Virtually nothing happens for the first two thirds of the book. The protagonist describes his world, ruminates on his place in history and generally takes us through every detail of his life. Even when the plot begins to unfold there's little movement. We get pages of him thinking about what to do and where he went wrong but he rarely does well.....anything.
Booth also develops a conceit for this novel that some might find clever but I find annoying. The protagonist speaks to the reader as if the reader lived in and could affect events in the world of the novel. Because of this the narrator withholds information supposedly in order to protect himself. For example we're never explicitly told where he is in Italy or his real name. He also withholds important information about another character in the novel until the book is nearly done. This means the reader doesn't really an opportunity to examine the plot and try to think ahead. We're kept in the dark until the narrator reveals something we should have known all along.
As I said, some readers will enjoy the story but it left me flat. This will be my last Martin Booth novel
If that kind of immersion engages you this is a great novel. Frankly, I was looking for a bit more plot and intrigue. Virtually nothing happens for the first two thirds of the book. The protagonist describes his world, ruminates on his place in history and generally takes us through every detail of his life. Even when the plot begins to unfold there's little movement. We get pages of him thinking about what to do and where he went wrong but he rarely does well.....anything.
Booth also develops a conceit for this novel that some might find clever but I find annoying. The protagonist speaks to the reader as if the reader lived in and could affect events in the world of the novel. Because of this the narrator withholds information supposedly in order to protect himself. For example we're never explicitly told where he is in Italy or his real name. He also withholds important information about another character in the novel until the book is nearly done. This means the reader doesn't really an opportunity to examine the plot and try to think ahead. We're kept in the dark until the narrator reveals something we should have known all along.
As I said, some readers will enjoy the story but it left me flat. This will be my last Martin Booth novel
