new Norfolk

[Eric Rosenbloom]

The new Lawrence Norfolk, In the Shape of a Boar, is quite different
from his previous books. A bit of the black-white thing we've talked
about here is in it, with Meilanion the night hunter rankling against
"honey-hair" Meleager's winning the interest of long-limbed Atalanta.
The last word -- the last sentence, in fact -- is "Now." and it works
similarly to the way other text-self-conscious books do, such as Gravity
Rainbow's apocalyptic "Now ev'rybody!" and Finnegans Wake's incomplete
"... a long the", leaving the reader quite alone but perhaps better
armed for the daily struggle. Its concern is a long poem based on the
ancient boar hunt of Calydon, about Greek partisans chasing down an SS
officer. It may or may not have actually happened, may be yet to happen,
and the katharsis it provides may or may not be actually directed to the
poet's pre-war friend-love triangle -- he's not talking, reserving the
mystery of the writer's intent, or leaving to every reader the meaning
they draw from it. It's not Pynchon, but I found it very satisfying.

See Amazon UK for my review:

<http://www.amazon.co.uk/exec/obidos/ASIN/0297646184/202-7302181-1858246>

Yours,
Eric R



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