769. The Drowned and the Saved

The Drowned and the Saved
Primo Levi

1986

Around 205 pages

Reading Primo Levi involves confronting the very worst that humanity has to offer. So it's not an enjoyable experience, but it is an unforgettable one.

This is a collection of essays on Nazi extermination camps, based on Levi's own experience. He addresses some of his most frequently asked questions as an Auschwitz survivor, presents real letters he have received from Germans in reaction to his writings, questions whether something like the Holocaust could happen again, and examines how the average human being could participate in something so evil.

No words can express what Levi went through, but he is an incredibly moving writer who describes things I wish I didn't know about. And when he was describing his survivor's guilt, my heart hurt. For me, there wasn't a whole lot of inspirational underpinnings about the human spirit in this one, but it's not his job to try to coddle his reader. 

Not a book that you can put down and easily walk away from. I can't say I'm glad I read it, but of course it deserves its five stars.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

Written a year before Levi's death.

UP NEXT: Foe by J.M. Coetzee

768. Love in the Time of Cholera

Love in the Time of Cholera
Gabriel Garcia Marquez
1985
Around 350 pages

Like many other talented authors we've encountered, he is bowing out of the List with a masterpiece. Here's my official Garcia Marquez ranking, and I'm severely bummed that we won't see him again:

1. Love in the Time of Cholera

2. One Hundred Years of Solitude

3. Autumn of the Patriarch

4. No One Writes to the Colonel

As you can see, this one manages to edge out One Hundred Years of Solitude with its power, and is easily one of the greatest romances of all time. Fermina and Florentino love each other, but Fermina's father disapproves, so he moves Fermina to another city. They still communicate, but Fermina eventually realizes they are practically strangers and moves on with somebody who has her family's blessing.

The story that Garcia Marquez tells is not that original, but the way he tells it makes it feel special. I loved these characters, even during their not so sympathetic moments. A beautiful story with a satisfying ending.

I'll miss you Gabriel!

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

On his own initiative, García Márquez persuaded singer Shakira, who is from the nearby city of Barranquilla, to provide two songs for the film adaptation.

Sales increased during the COVID-19 pandemic.

UP NEXT: The Drowned and The Saved by Primo Levi

767. The Parable of the Blind

The Parable of the Blind
Gert Hofmann
1985
Around 150 pages

I love it when novelists are inspired by paintings or other works of art. It makes me feel like inspiration is magical and can strike when you least expect it, even if you don't currently have that great idea. I mean, I didn't really enjoy this, but I appreciate the way it came together.

Oh, you haven't heard of Pieter Bruegel's 1568 painting, Parabel der Blinden? You cretin. I hadn't either. Let me fill you in. It depicts a very literal take on "the blind leading the blind" expression. So this is sort of like reading the novelization of a movie, which very rarely ends in literary triumph.

This is a short novel, but I feel like it could have been even shorter, with not much happening outside of... you know, that main thing in the painting. It was a creative idea, but didn't really have enough to sustain it for a whole novel. It was more of a fable, but 150 pages is long for a fable.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Publishers Weekly describes the novel as an "implacably bleak fable."

UP NEXT: Love in the Time of Cholera by Gabriel Garcia Marquez

766. Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit

Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit
Jeanette Winterson
1985
Around 180 pages

Although it is sometimes referred to as a "lesbian novel," Winterson objected to this label and said "I've never understood why straight fiction is supposed to be for everyone, but anything with a gay character or that includes gay experience is only for queers." Fair point, although I don't blame anybody for getting hyped about novels that include queer characters. They are few and far between.

The book is semi-autobiographical and is based on Winterson's life growing up in Accrington, Lancashire. The main character, Jeanette, is adopted by evangelists, so her coming to terms with her sexuality predictably isn't met with empathy and understanding.

The novel is divided into eight sections, each named after the first eight books in the Bible. I enjoyed these allusions, and all the literary references (my girls Charlotte Bronte and George Eliot both got shoutouts). 

Still, it was a frustrating read with frustrating characters who I did not spend any time with. Not terrible, but not an essential novel either.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Adapted by the BBC for a television series in 1990.

UP NEXT: The Parable of the Blind by Gert Hofmann

765. The Cider House Rules

The Cider House Rules
John Irving
1985

Around 560 pages

I absolutely love John Irving, so prepare for another gusher. He is a master craftsman, and it's almost scientific how he is able to design the perfect story.

Homer Wells grows up in an orphanage, and develops a deep relationship with Dr. Wilbur Larch, who trains Homer to be an obstetrician. Dr. Larch performs abortions, which Homer considers morally wrong. As a young man, Homer befriends a young couple, Candy and Wally, who come to St. Cloud's for an abortion. Homer leaves the orphanage, and returns with them to Wally's family's orchard in Heart's Rock, near the Maine coast. 

It's always hard to summarize Irving's novels, because so many weird events take place that I wouldn't want to spoil for new readers. I would read more biographies if they were all penned by Irving. He maps out the strangeness of life so well. All of his characters are so richly fleshed out, with Dr. Larch topping my list of favorite Irving characters. Irving, with his nuanced and layered morality, is the perfect character to take on a subject as complicated as abortion.

This is easily on the skill level of Balzac and Maugham. One of my favorite novels of all time. 

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

Wally's experience getting shot down over Burma was based in part on that of Irving's biological father (whom he never met), who was shot down over Burma and survived.

Adapted to film in 1999.

UP NEXT: Oranges are Not the Only Fruit by Jeannette Winterson

764. A Maggot

A Maggot
John Fowles

1985

Around 460 pages

John Fowles is quick to assure us in the prologue that we won't have to deal with actual maggots. He's using the archaic sense of the term, which means a "whim, quirk, or obsession." Kind of weird to choose a title you immediately have to clarify. But John Fowles is a weird guy.

So this brings me back to my early days of doing the List, when I wore a younger man's clothes. The novels in the 1700s often were formatted as epistolary works. This is a technique that I really liked, so it's nice to get back to it as we near the end of the project. Fowles begins with a narration about five travelers in rural England, then the rest of the novel consists of interview transcripts, newspaper articles, and facsimiles surrounding a hanging near where the travelers were staying.

This is what we have come to expect from Fowles at this point. He offers several endings and explanations of events, so it's open for endless interpretation. To me, that just feels like he's making it easier on himself. Many writers consider different endings, and then they, you know, choose one. In this instance, I can get what he was going for, with having the reader question the veracity of what we are told in the media. But it's just not a choice I love.

So our last Fowles novel on the List. I won't miss him, but we have definitely had more intrusive guests on this blog. Here's my official ranking:

1. The French Lieutenant's Woman

2. The Collector
3. The Magus

4. A Maggot

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Following Fowles' death in 2005, his unpublished diaries from 1965 to 1990 were revealed to contain racist and homophobic statements, with particular ire towards Jewish people. That's disappointing, although maybe we shouldn't be reading people's unpublished diaries.

UP NEXT: The Cider House Rules by John Irving

763. Less Than Zero

Less Than Zero
Bret Easton Ellis
1985
Around 210 pages

Less Than Zero is the rating that this novel deserves. Unfortunately, it's only the warm up act to American Psycho. 

Clay is a rich young college student who has returned to his hometown of Los Angeles, California for winter break. He feels isolated from the party culture of his friends. Namely how everybody is an amoral drug addict. 

Carl Sagan had me feeling good for two seconds about the universe, now we have this guy. I hated all the characters. I'm ready to request a moratorium on novels with young men writing about their friends' partying lifestyles. It's not as interesting as they think it is.

RATING: -----

Interesting Facts:

Released when he was 21 years old and still a student at Bennington College. 

UP NEXT: A Maggot by John Fowles

762. Contact

Contact
Carl Sagan
1985

Around 435 pages

We are on a streak of five star novels lately if you don't count William Burroughs, and I try not to. 

Eleanor "Elie" Arroway is a graduate of Harvard and has always demonstrated a high aptitude for science and mathematics. She becomes the director of "Project Argus", a radio telescope array in New Mexico dedicated to the search for aliens. The project eventually discovers a signal containing a series of prime numbers coming from the Vega system, 26 light years away. Naturally, everybody loses their minds over this, but Elie is determined to continue her quest for Truth.

Carl Sagan is the cool science teacher whose experiments are so fun, they don't even feel like learning. Here's a Carl Sagan quote that sums up this novel well: "“The way to find out about our place in the universe is by examining the universe and by examining ourselves - without preconceptions, with as unbiased a mind as we can muster.” I absolutely loved Elie, and couldn't get enough of Sagan's perspective.

Sagan makes me hopeful about the universe, so for that he deserves all the stars in the cosmos.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

The novel originated as a screenplay by Sagan and Ann Druyan (whom he later married) in 1979. When development of the film stalled, Sagan decided to convert the stalled film into a novel. The film concept was subsequently revived and eventually released in 1997.

Reading science fiction and fantasy as a child inspired Sagan to become an astronomer.

UP NEXT: Less Than Zero by Bret Easton Ellis

761. Perfume

Perfume
Patrick Suskind
1985
Around 265 pages

This premise provides a great opportunity to hone your skills as a writer. Here we have a character who interprets the world and communicates with people mostly through smell, which requires tough literary acrobats to pull off. Suskind rose to the self- imposed challenge admirably. My creative muscles would probably need some medical attention after this.

Jean-Baptiste Grenouille is an orphan with an exceptional nose. He is apprenticed to a local tanner, which is a pretty brutal place to be if you can smell. Grenouille is a murderer, as you may have surmised from the novel's subtitle. He discovers the power of scents over people, and vacillates between hatred and contempt for humanity.

Talk about an unforgettable ending. This was a disturbing novel, but like The Wasp Factory, it was so unique and well done that you can't help but admire it. His melding of different genres was masterful, and Jean-Baptiste is a one of a kind character. Sort of like Mr. Ripley, with superpowers.

Thankfully, there is more Suskind to come!

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

Suskind may have been inspired by the real-life story of Spanish serial killer, Manuel Blanco Romasanta, also known as the "Tallow-Man", who killed several women and children, sold their clothes, and extracted their body-fat to make soap.

With translations into 49 languages and more than 20 million copies sold worldwide to date, Perfume is one of the best-selling German novels of the 20th century.

Adapted to film in 2006.

UP NEXT: Contact by Carl Sagan

760. Queer

Queer
William Burroughs
1985
Around 160 pages

Great, more wisdom from the guy who drunkenly killed his wife. 

So this is partly a sequel to Junkie, which is definitely something I did not request. The novel begins with the introduction of "Lee," who recounts his life in Mexico City among American expatriate college students and bar owners. Like Burroughs, Lee is insecure and becomes obsessed with pursuing a young man named Allerton, a recently discharged American Navy serviceman.

Nothing is as gross as Naked Lunch, and hey, at least this one was short. Not enjoyable at all.

RATING: *----

Interesting Facts:

In December 2022, it was announced that Luca Guadagnino would be directing a film adaptation of the novel with Daniel Craig starring in the lead role.

UP NEXT: Perfume by Patrick Suskind

759. Hawksmoor

Hawksmoor
Peter Ackroyd
1985
Around 290 pages

You have to really do something different with a mystery to catch the attention of the Powers That Be. Telling the parallel stories of Nicholas Dyer, who built seven churches in 18th-century London for which he needed human sacrifices, and Nicholas Hawksmoor, a detective in the 1980s, who investigates murders committed in the same churches, is a pretty good way to do it.

So a pretty cool concept. But unfortunately, I found Ackroyd a dry and overly detailed storyteller. It wasn't as exhausting as The Name of the Rose by any means, but both novels are intended to be intellectual heavyweights. And those kinds of novels are never overly concerned with pacing.

But I still enjoyed this for the most part, and I thought the background information about the architecture was cool. I was much more into our "modern" Nicholas. Ackroyd is better suited for nonfiction, but mysteries can't help but be fun.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Joyce Carol Oates for The New York Times wrote: "Hawksmoor is a witty and macabre work of the imagination, intricately plotted, obsessive in its much-reiterated concerns with mankind's fallen nature."

UP NEXT: Queer by William Burroughs

758. The Handmaid's Tale

The Handmaid's Tale
Margaret Atwood
1985
Around 310 pages

Damn, I really wish this novel didn't resonant so much. Margaret Atwood brilliantly takes women's fears to the extreme and brings them to their logical conclusion. I was so disturbed by this that I have never been able to watch the Hulu series, even though I hear good things.

Set in the not so distant future, the story takes place in Gilead, a patriarchal, white supremacist, totalitarian state, which has overthrown the United States government. Our narrator Offred (Of Fred, geddit?) is one of the "Handmaids," who are women forcibly assigned to produce children for the "Commanders," the ruling class. We get a glimpse of Offred's life before the takeover, which was honestly the most chilling part. Those early signs that something was wrong, like suddenly not being able to access your bank account, were so well done.

Atwood says that all of the scenarios offered in The Handmaid's Tale have actually occurred in real life, and would bring newspaper articles to interviews to prove it. Outside of the obvious relevance to the United States in particular, Atwood is a wonderful storyteller and is a master at pacing and world-building.

There are so many memorable moments from this novel and I am happy to report that the sequel provides an equally compelling follow up. What an ending too. Perfect from start to finish.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

The American Library Association lists The Handmaid's Tale as number 37 on the "100 Most Frequently Challenged Books of 1990–2000"

UP NEXT: Hawksmoor by Peter Ackroyd

757. Reasons to Live

Reasons to Live
Amy Hempel
1985
Around 130 pages

Hey, I'm always looking for more reasons to live, so I was quite happy to sit down with this short story collection.

She really means it when she says short stories. We get a few pages for each vignette, which feature characters experiencing small triumphs in life. The stories pack a lot of punch considering their brevity, and Hempel is a compelling and unique writer.

My favorite was probably "The Man in Bogota," where we learn a kidnapped man in Colombia forms the healthiest habits of his life in captivity. I found Hempel to be a breath of fresh air. It's not easy balancing optimism with realism, and Hempel does that here in tiny, comedic moments.

So a quick and digestible read that makes for a good chaser after some of our heavier content.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Hempel currently teaches in the MFA Program at the Michener Center for Writers at University of Texas at Austin.

UP NEXT: The Handmaid's Tale by Margaret Atwood

756. Old Masters

Old Masters
Thomas Bernhard
1985
Around 310 pages

Oh, it's you again. That's been my reaction to every Thomas Bernhard novel on the List. They are not terrible, just pessimistic, and I feel like all of his entries are retreads of the same theme. Of course, they are much more menacing authors on this List, so I won't complain too much. 

This time, the cranky old guy at the center of the novel is 82-year-old music critic named Reger.  For over thirty years, he has sat on the same bench in front of Tintoretto's White-bearded Man in the Bordone Room of the Kunsthistorisches Museum for four or five hours every other day. The book is narrated by Atzbacher, who encounters Reger in the museum. 

I feel like Bill Murray could star in a dreary movie adaptation of this work. Bernhard's characters tend to eschew society and have contempt for everyone. This one seemed a little more hopeful than his other works. Even if everything else fails us in life, it's always fun to hate watch things with friends. That's what I got out of it anyway.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Bernhard's home is now a museum.

UP NEXT: Reasons to Live by Amy Hempel

755. White Noise

White Noise
Don DeLillo
1985
Around 330 pages

Oh Don. We continue to not click very well, I don't know if it is you or me. I am not a big fan of the sprawling, absurdist works. And this is so kooky that I can't believe it was adapted to film.

White Noise tells the story of Jack Gladney, a small-town college professor whose suburban routine is shattered when a train crash results in a massive chemical spill. DeLillo has a pretty bleak view on the rampant consumerism in modern America. 

I get that this is a significant entry in the history of post modernism, but it just bummed me out for a couple of days. I never think his comedy lands, and while I was sympathetic to the characters, nobody was particularly likable. 

Will probably be enjoyed by fans of Cloud Atlas. Otherwise, not my bag.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Adapted to film in 2022.

DeLillo originally wanted to call the book Panasonic, but the Panasonic Corporation objected.

UP NEXT: Old Masters by Thomas Bernhard

754. Legend

Legend
David Gemmell
1984
Around 320 pages

I keep thinking that we are done with fantasy novels on this List, and then another one sneaks up on me. I am a ridiculously easy audience when it comes to fantasy, so I was into this story the moment Gemmell dropped his first "warlord."

The Drenai Empire is under threat from the tribal Nadir people, who have united for the first time under Ulric, a famous conqueror. The fate of the Drenai Empire depends on their fortress, Dros Delnoch, holding strong against the Nadir army. Rek Wanderer once turned away from battle but gets involved in the siege, because of a woman of course. 

The dialogue between the men and women was a little bit jarring to me. I guess Gemmell isn't the first fantasy author that wasn't particularly convincing in his female characters, nor will he be the last. But the exchanges felt like something from a mediocre rom com. Then again, it's heroic fantasy, so the presence of swooning women is expected.

This was actually really fun, even if it didn't provide the most original take on fantasy tropes. Like I said, I'm an easy audience.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

In 1984 Century's computer software division, Century Software produced a game for the ZX Spectrum computer based on the novel also called Legend. The novel was included as part of the pack and acted as a form of copy protection for the game.

Gemmell got the idea for the book in 1976. He was being tested for cancer, and to take his mind off it he tried writing a book, which he called "Against the Hordes". The fortress and its attackers, the Nadir, were metaphors for him and the cancer. In the end, he was found not to have cancer after all and he forgot about the book, which he claims wasn't very good anyway. However, in 1980, a friend of Gemmell's read the manuscript and told him that the story had potential. Encouraged, Gemmell set to work rewriting the book.

UP NEXT: White Noise by Don DeLillo

753. The Unbearable Lightness of Being

The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Milan Kundera
1984
Around 315 pages

It's strange to call such a complicated novel an easy read, but I always think Kundera provides a fast and digestible experience. And I agree that being is often unbearable, so I was ready for this work.

Kundera tells the story of Tomas, a serial cheater who falls in love with Tereza. He still can't be faithful, though, so Tereza lives a pretty miserable existence. His long term lover Sabina is a beautiful artist who flees during the Soviet occupation of Prague. Tomas is at particular risk during the occupation, as he has written articles in the past condemning the Czech Communists, so he has to decide if he wants to run away and make a new life with Tereza.

All of Kundera's are deeply philosophical, and I find his line of thinking to be convincing and compelling. Of course, Tomas was an infuriating character, and I kept hoping Tereza would change, but those aren't flaws. The characters really felt human, and got a very human ending.

Enjoying Kundera, and we still have one more to go!

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

In 1988, an American-made film adaptation of the novel was released starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Juliette Binoche.

Kundera remarked that the movie had very little to do with the spirit either of the novel or the characters in it.

Kundera says he no longer allows any adaptations of his work.

UP NEXT: Legend by David Gemmell

752. Dictionary of Khazars

Dictionary of Khazars
Milorad Pavic

1984
Around 340 pages

So I knew right away that this was going to be a piece of work. There's no plot, and there are two different editions of this novel: Male and Female. The only difference is in one paragraph. Already that's a lot. When you have so many gimmicks lined up (and I've been on the other side of this, the writer side of this), it generally means that your writing is not enough.

Where to begin with a summary? Dictionary of the Khazars is the imaginary book of knowledge of the Khazars, a people who flourished somewhere beyond Transylvania between the seventh and ninth centuries. This story combines the dictionaries of the world's three major religions with entries that leap between past and future.

So we get a Serbian novel, at long last. I don't know; how do you judge an encyclopedia? Certainly, it doesn't read as a conventional novel. Depending on who you talk to, that means it's a triumph or a failure. Personally, I found it to be an exhausting read; it's one of those novels that you can spend a year trying to unpack. 

So depending on your tastes, you might have a great time with this one, or just be anxiously awaiting for it to be over. I found myself in the latter category.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

A ballet adaption of the Dictionary of the Khazars was staged at Madlenianum Opera and Theatre.

UP NEXT: The Unbearable Lightness of Being by Milan Kundera

751. The Busconductor Hines

The Busconductor Hines
James Kelman
1984
Around 240 pages

Well, if you thought a novel about a busconductor couldn't be interesting....you were right.

So we get a slice of the Glasgow scene, with our busconductor Robert Hines finding life to be "a very perplexing kettle of coconuts." Like many of us, Robert is unsatisfied with his job and finds comfort in his family and rich interior life. Honestly, it's hard to read as Kelman uses authentic Scottish dialect.

I have to imagine that Kelman portrayed the Glasgow working man convincingly, but I don't think it has as much resonance for the non locals. Kind of a middle of the road experience for me.

Only 250 left!

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

First novel published by Kelman.

UP NEXT: Dictionary of the Khazars by Milorad Pavic

750. Empire of the Sun

Empire of the Sun
J.G. Ballard
1984
Around 350 pages

750! We are officially 75% done. If I walked away now, I would at least get a C in List Completion. But dammit, people, I can't walk away now. The end is nigh!

The novel recounts the story of a young English boy, Jamie Graham, who lives with his parents in Shanghai. After the Pearl Harbor attack, Japan occupies the Shanghai International Settlement, and Jim becomes separated from his parents.

After barely scrapping out a survival, he decides to try to surrender to the Imperial Japanese Army. After many attempts, he finally succeeds and is interned in the Lunghua Civilian Assembly Centre. The camp prisoners are forced upon a march to Nantao, with many dying along the route.

I'm unsurprised that Steven Spielberg adapted the film version. This is exactly the sort of sentimental war story that he loves to put on the big screen. Ballard infused his narrative with his real life experience, which gave the plot more weight than it might have had in lesser hands. I still enjoyed Ballard's dystopian work more. Still, this was an upsetting but ultimately uplifting story.

Here's to 251 more novels!

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Adapted by Steven Spielberg in 1987.

Awarded the Guardian Fiction Prize, the James Tait Black Memorial Prize and was shortlisted for the Booker Prize.

UP NEXT: The Busconductor Hines by James Kelman

749. The Year and Death of Ricardo Reis

The Year and Death of Ricardo Reis

Jose Saramago
1984
Around 360 pages

Jose Saramago is another List author who is going to be with us for some time, so it's important to make a good first impression. This felt a little like a poorer quality Jorge Luis Borges work, but he's still finding his sea legs as an author.

The book chronicles the final year in the life of Ricardo Reis, one of the many heteronyms used by the Fernando Pessoa. Reis returns to Lisbon from Brazil, upon learning of Pessoa's death. While there, he takes up residence in a hotel, where he wastes his days reading newspapers and wandering the streets of Lisbon.

So I enjoy the novel's concept. It's the kind of metafiction that would make Borges' proud. But I don't think he really stands out on his own yet. I found the weird grammatical structure distracting and the frequent digressions from the main plot irritating. 

Satisfying ending though.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Translated into English in 1991.

Won the Independent Foreign Fiction Prize.

UP NEXT: Empire of the Sun by J.G. Ballard

748. The Lover

The Lover
Marguerite Duras
1984
Around 120 pages

Thank you Marguerite Duras for giving me hope. Duras published this novel when she was 70. That means I have at least 42 years to come up with something worthwhile to put on the page. Of course, she had a long and successful career before this, but that's irrelevant.

There are two published versions of The Lover: one written in the form of an autobiography, the other, called The North China Lover and released in conjunction with the film adaptation. I read the first version, because that version felt more self-contained. In 1929, a 15-year-old girl is traveling by ferry across the Mekong Delta, returning from a holiday to her boarding school in Saigon. She attracts the attention of a 27-year-old son of a Chinese business magnate, the heir to a fortune. He strikes up a conversation with the girl, and she becomes his lover.

Duras is a beautiful writer, but I found myself largely unmoved by the action of the story. Maybe we have seen this plot one too many times. Teenage girl gets seduced by much older man, and nobody is really asking why the man is attracted to a child in the first place. But I love some of her phrases, with one of my favorite quotes coming from the very first page: "very early in my life it was too late."

So another story about a loss of innocence that didn't make much of an impression, but passed enjoyably enough.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Translated into 43 languages.

UP NEXT: The Year of the Death of Ricardo Reis by Jose Saramago

747. The Wasp Factory

The Wasp Factory
Iain Banks
1984
Around 185 pages

I love Iain Banks, proving that I can love disturbing novels when they are done well, and when there's something there beyond perversion and pedophilia. This is one of my top five horror novels, although Misery might edge it out for the number one spot.

16-year-old Frank Cauldhame lives with his father on a small island in Scotland. Due to a childhood incident, he is impotent and resents women. He shows all the early signs of a serial killer, and actually has a disturbing a head start on his body count.  

Banks has brilliant twists and turns in his plots. So many of our "shocking" novels aren't actually that shocking at all, because you know that our author will bend logic and pacing just to put the grossest thing they can think of on the next page. But this was a thoughtful plot that unfolded with excellent timing. Frank was a fascinating character and I really had a morbid curiosity about how his relationship with his father would turn out. 

Of course, some of these images are going to stick with me, and I really wish they wouldn't, but this was overall a rewarding and eerie read. 

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Neil Gaiman reviewed The Wasp Factory for Imagine magazine, and stated that "will delight horror fans with its mixture of black humor and horrible, imaginative, beautiful deaths."

A 1997 poll of over 25,000 readers of The Independent listed The Wasp Factory as one of the top 100 books of the 20th century.

UP NEXT: The Lover by Maguerite Duras

746. Neuromancer

Neuromancer
William Gibson
1984
Around 270 pages

This is a familiar title to everybody who is a cyberpunk fan. It's definitely not my preferred aesthetic, but I enjoy dipping my toes into the genre from time to time. 

Set in the future, the novel follows Henry Case, a washed-up hacker hired for one last job, which brings him in contact with a powerful artificial intelligence. How much do you love it when a professional is hired for one last gig? They are doomed from the start.

Gibson was in the process of writing this novel when he saw Blade Runner, and figured his novel was sunk, because everybody would see it as rip off. Just goes to show that you have to block that noise out while you're writing, and believe that your voice and perspective will put a fresh spin on familiar tropes. And Gibson certainly did that, with a fast-paced story that popularized terms like "cyberspace."

Apparently Gibson later viewed this as an adolescent work, and it does feel like it was written for teenage boys, but I don't necessarily think that means it's not a smart novel. Okay, so he didn't see cell phones coming. Who did?

It's a novel with a cool vibe, so that alone makes it worth reading.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

A video game adaptation was published in 1988 by Interplay.

In August 2017, it was announced that Deadpool director Tim Miller was signed on to direct a new film adaptation by Fox.

UP NEXT: The Wasp Factory by Iain Banks

745. Nights at the Circus

Nights at the Circus
Angela Carter
1984

Around 300 pages

After such a horrifying entry, I was going to run happily into the arms of whoever was next, even if it was Thomas Pynchon. Thankfully, it's Angela Carter. I'm kind of over the surreal nightlife romps, but I'll take anything that isn't covered by drawings of penises.

The novel focuses on the life and exploits of Sophie Fevvers, a winged woman raised in a brothel and hatched from an egg laid by unknown parents. At the beginning of the narrative, she has become a celebrated aerialist. She captivates the young journalist Jack Walser, who runs away with the circus and falls into a world that he's not prepared for.

So this was a modern twist on a fairy tale, and I thought she wove in the elements of magic realism into the story well. It's a bizarre, erotic, and outlandish world. Personally, I like feeling a bit more grounded, but I can understand the appeal of this strange flight of fancy.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

In 2006, it was adapted for the stage by Tom Morris and Emma Rice for the Kneehigh Theatre Company.

UP NEXT: Neuromancer by William Gibson

744. Blood and Guts in High School

Blood and Guts in High School
Kathy Acker
1984
Around 165 pages

What the hell did I just read? 

Acker tells a disturbing, barely coherent story about Janey Smith, using a collage method. She inserts letters, poems, drama scenes, dream visions and childish drawings into a very loose narrative. Acker also freely admitted to using plagiarism in her work."Hello, I'm Erica Jong", a chapbook written passive-aggressively towards Jong. Of course, the entire novel rubbed me the wrong way, but this part was particularly annoying, with how much Jong outstrips Acker in talent and substance. Jealousy does not become Acker.

Just disgusting and perverse, with no redeeming qualities whatsoever. If you can avoid having these images in your brain, consider it a blessing.

RATING: -----

Interesting Facts:

Laura Parnes created a "re-imagining" of the novel as a multi-screen video art piece in 2007.

UP NEXT: Nights at the Circus by Angela Carter

743. Flaubert's Parrot

Flaubert's Parrot
Julian Barnes
1984
Around 190 pages

Thank you, Julian Barnes. We were floundering there for a minute. I adore novels that focus on our authors of List past, especially when the subject is one of my personal favorites as well.

Geoffrey Braithwaite is a widowed English doctor and Flaubert expert. Rather than following a traditional narrative, each chapter explores some aspect of Flaubert's life and how it ties into Geoffrey's experience. My favorite chapters focused on the criticism Flaubert receives for his writing, and how Geoffrey rebuts each point. It's inspirational to me as a writer, since even Flaubert has his haters.

Julian Barnes really weaves Geoffrey's story into this examination well, and takes on parasocial relationships. Ahem. I might have a few of those. And it is thematically brilliant to focus on the parrot as a centerpiece. While visiting sites related to Flaubert, Geoffrey discovers two museums claiming to display the stuffed parrot which sat on Flaubert's writing desk while he wrote Un Coeur Simple. While trying to identify which is authentic, Braithwaite learns that his parrot could be any one of fifty that had been held in the collection of the municipal museum.

I love unpacking how we put artists on pedestals, but relentlessly criticize their work as well. And then we get weirdly obsessed with the objects they've left behind, as though seeing their desks will help us get closer to them. I am, of course, putting myself in this category as well, as a writer of this blog and frequent visitor of writers' museums. 

Julian Barnes is one of my favorite writers, and thankfully this is not the last we will see of him.

RATING: *****

Interesting Facts:

Shortlisted for the Booker Prize in 1984. 

UP NEXT: Blood and Guts in High School by Kathy Acker

742. Money: A Suicide Note

Money: A Suicide Note
Martin Amis
1984
Around 400 pages

Martin Amis made his debut on the List with a novel titled Dead Babies. So he is obviously intent on making a splash, and proving that he is not his father, dammit. 

The novel is based on Amis's experience as a screenwriter on the movie Saturn 3, starring Kirk Douglas. I have never heard of this movie, and apparently it bombed, so good on Amis for turning that experience into something positive, if this can be called positive. John Self is a successful commercial director set to shoot his first film with producer Fielding Goodney. He must contend with the actors' egos, and threatening phone calls from Frank the Phone. 

Naming your alter-ego John Self? A lot of Martin Amis' work seems clunky to me. But it was interesting getting a "celebrity" novel and Amis provides a new perspective on America at the time. Punny names always take me out of it though.

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Adapted for television by the BBC in 2010.

UP NEXT: Flaubert's Parrot by Julian Barnes

741. Shame

Shame 
Salman Rushdie
1983
Around 320 pages

I fear our dazzling streak of excellent novels is drawing to a close. I know it is ironically sacrilegious to dislike Salman Rushdie, but I never feel like he has much regard for his audience. And his comedy falls flat for me. That being said, I enjoyed this more than Grimus or Midnight's Children, so we are moving in a positive direction.

The story takes place in a country that is not quite Pakistan. One of the three sisters (Chunni, Munnee, and Bunny Shakil) gives birth to Omar Khayyám Shakil, but they act as a unit of mothers, and never reveal Omar's birth mother or father. Eventually, Omar Khayyám Shakil's team of moms let him leave. He enrolls in a school and is convinced by his tutor to become a doctor. Over time, he comes in contact with both Iskander Harappa (assumed to be based off of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto) and General Raza Hyder, (assumed to be based off of General Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq).

Honestly, I have no idea who these people are, so I always feel like I miss out on the depth of Rushdie's themes. Of course, this isn't a flaw in his writing, but I definitely feel shut out. Other writers, like J.M. Coetzee, also write stories that are heavily based on real people and events. But even though I am not well-versed in South African history, I don't feel at sea as much when I'm reading Coetzee's works. 

But I do enjoy the exploration of shame as a theme, and the three sisters were great characters that felt like they were straight out of mythology. So my favorite Rushdie so far? But that's not really saying much. 

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Shortlisted for the 1983 Booker Prize.

UP NEXT: Money: A Suicide Note by Martin Amis