893. The Unconsoled

The Unconsoled
Kazuo Ishiguro
1995
Around 535 pages

Kazuo Ishiguro is a great writer, and while this didn't entirely fit my personal tastes, I can still appreciate it as an outstanding work teeming with captivating prose. 

Ryder, an acclaimed pianist, arrives at a city for the most important concert he has ever given, except he doesn't know where he is, and he can't remember agreeing to perform the concert in the first place. In other words, it's your standard issue nightmare. My dreams love taking me to airports, only to realize that I can't find my passport. They're classics for a reason.

This is a very Kafka-esque story, although Kafka was briefer than this. Personally, I don't love dreamlike or hallucinogenic narratives. I feel like the stakes are pretty low if any moment our main character can just wake up and declare it was all a dream, not that Ishiguro was guilty of this. His writing is always a little slow, but contains so many brilliant observations about humanity that I don't mind that much.

Not my favorite, but it's fair to say that our streak continues!

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Received strong negative reviews upon publication, but has come to be known as one of Ishiguro's best works.

UP NEXT: Alias Grace by Margaret Atwood

892. Morvern Callar

Morvern Callar
Alan Warner
1995

Around 240 pages

Well, that's a relief. We were in a definitive slump, and on my birth year no less. Thank you Alan Warner for writing an unusual and entertaining novel.

This is such a strange one that I don't want to give almost anything away. Suffice to say, Movern's boyfriend kills himself and she uses it as an opportunity to change her boring life as a supermarket clerk. Apparently, Warner originally conceived this as a narrative from the point of view of Movern's boyfriend, but decided that POV was too limiting. Which is a good lesson to us aspiring writers out there. Sometimes changing the POV is all you need to jumpstart a stalled story. 

This is an atmospheric novel that follows a very strange character. It reminded me of The Driver's Seat by Muriel Spark, although the ending wasn't quite as satisfying. Still a welcome change of pace and I wish we saw more of him on this List.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Adapted to film in 2002. 

Won the Somerset Maugham Award in 1996.

UP NEXT: The Unconsoled by Kazuo Ishiguro

891. The Information

The Information
Martin Amis 
1995
Around 500 pages

Ah yes, the novel that the library let me keep, because it had been so long since anybody attempted to check it out. Not exactly the honor you want for yourself as a novelist, but it sounds like Amis was doing pretty well for himself by this point, so I don't think he would mind.

Our two main characters are both writers, one successful, one not. Amis based them both on himself, because narcissism runs in his family. Oh, Marty, you know I kid. Gwyn Barry is a literary darling, Richard Tull is not. This could lead to a very interesting story, but unfortunately, Amis has other ambitions rather than laying out a compelling tale about literary rivals. Although if you are looking to scratch that itch, I would highly recommend The Black Prince.

But sadly, we are not talking about Iris Murdoch right now. Amis is showing off for us with his prose. At times, it's impressive. At other times, it's so self-indulgent that it's physically impossible not to roll your eyes. And once again, I'm left with the impression that the Amis family just has contempt for all of us, especially women.

And I usually like novels about mid-life crises. Oh well, this is part of my collection now.

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Amis dropped his agent, Pat Kavanagh, wife of Julian Barnes, and had signed up with Andrew Wylie, perceived to be a more aggressive agent. Amis and Barnes had been friends but this caused a rift that was played out in public. 

Amis received an almost unheard of advance for a literary novel (approximately £500,000 according to most sources) which caused resentment and envy amongst his peers.

UP NEXT: Morvern Callar by Alan Warner

890. The Moor's Last Sigh

The Moor's Last Sigh
Salman Rushdie
1995
Around 435 pages

Rushdie is one of those authors that I just don't enjoy, but the List will continue to set us up on dates together, like some sort of hellbent cupid who can't pick up on body language. So I must keep ragging on a guy who was stabbed over his writing, which doesn't feel entirely righteous. Sorry Salman.

Moraes Zogoiby, who is called "Moor," is an exceptional character, whose body ages twice as fast as normal and also has a deformed hand. Rushdie actually kept fixating on the deformed hand and as someone with a deformed hand myself... shut up about the deformed hand.

In Rushdie's strange worlds, I never feel like any character behaves in a believable way, but I guess that is part of his unique appeal. It is also jam-packed with allusions that I don't get (who on Earth is William Babington Macauley?). 

Still, I found this more enjoyable than his previous works, so I guess we are moving in a positive direction? 

RATING: **---

Interesting Facts:

Won the Whitbread prize for Best Novel.

UP NEXT: The Information by Martin Amis