BOOKS | Reviews
CONTEMPORARY NOVEL JAMES ROBERTSON The Professor of Truth (Hamish Hamilton) ●●●●●
Twenty-one years after the death of his wife and child in a plane bombing, Dr Alan Tealing remains unconvinced by the official account of this atrocity. Tealing’s obsession with what he calls The Case defines the novel: this is Lockerbie in everything but name. Indeed, while James Robertson’s previous novels have been seeped in Scottish culture, he opts to avoid a precise location in the Scottish-set first act, where
Tealing, an English literature lecturer, is visited one wintry night by a terminally ill American intelligence officer. This encounter sends Tealing to rural Australia, where a second act is played out in searing heat.
Beyond the bold political narrative, this tightly structured
novel carries wider themes such as the effect of time, and the veracity of what we are told by those in power. Robertson’s construction of Tealing in the opening chapters is exceptional, with his flawed protagonist driven by an overwhelming desire, not for justice, but for the truth that he hopes will bring him peace. Meanwhile, Tealing’s resistance to rebuild his shattered existence is a compelling study of grief, and Robertson’s description of the immediate aftermath of the bombing is superbly written, sensitive but provocative.
The Australian heat zaps the energy in the second act where the pace slows a little too much; Tealing is patient when the reader demands urgency, but the climax – also driven by an act beyond his control – delivers a satisfactory conclusion and confirms Robertson as one of Scotland’s great contemporary storytellers. (Kevin Scott)
’Captures the smell and essence of Britain.’ STEPHEN FRY
M A T T H I L L
HISTORICAL DRAMA KATE MANNING My Notorious Life by Madame X (Bloomsbury) ●●●●● POETRY HELEN IVORY Waiting for Bluebeard (Bloodaxe Books) ●●●●●
SCI-FI HORROR MATT HILL The Folded Man (Sandstone Press) ●●●●● HISTORICAL CRIME JENNY MAYHEW A Wolf in Hindelheim (Hutchinson) ●●●●●
After a year of American politicians sounding off about women’s bodies like it was the 19th century, Kate Manning’s novel, inspired by an infamous midwife/abortion provider from that era, comes as a reminder of how grim things used to be. Axie Muldoon, an orphan from the
slums of New York, becomes the apprentice to a woman who is the only hope for the desperate and pregnant. She later rises to wealth through her own skills and ingenuity, but never loses her sense of duty towards those in trouble, nor her fear that everything – family, status, freedom – could all be lost at any moment. The plot sags in the second half as it becomes obvious where the story’s going, and in her eagerness to defend women like ‘Madame X’, Manning makes her too noble. There are some unpleasant but necessary details which show the risks of backstreet procedures and the social pressures of the time, but the lively, compelling, irreverent voice of Axie springs off the page and keeps the book readable to the end. (Andrea Mullaney)
54 THE LIST 16 May–13 Jun 2013
In what is undoubtedly her most bewitching poetry collection to date, Helen Ivory peels away the layers of reality and leaves her reader a tantalising world to explore. Each poem is beautifully woven together to create a dream-like narrative. Through the construction of a half-remembered, half-invented childhood, the book explores a woman’s relationship with the world around her as she changes and grows.
Ivory’s unique voice and stark
language makes her world remarkably refreshing. Its beautiful simplicity is engaging, allowing the reader to be easily lured into this seemingly familiar world, while being seduced by the poet’s subtle use of magical realism. By dissolving the barriers between reality and fantasy, and bringing objects such as houses and stars to life, the poetry’s subtle distortion of the world as we know it leaves the reader with a delicious, disquieting feeling. This collection of poetry is one that will resonate in the reader’s mind, and insist it be read again and again. (Karyn Dougan)
Part sci-fi, part horror, Matt Hill’s debut depicts a war-torn near-future Britain poisoned by nationalism and racism. Using anxieties over riots, terrorism and the recession as a springboard for satire, Hill makes weighty topics accessible through a Palahniukian, staccato style and the odd charm of anti-hero, Brian Meredith. The novel opens with Meredith
exploring the congenital condition that caused his legs to fuse together. He gets by on a mixture of mermaid origin myth, drugs, prostitutes, and ritual self-harm before being forced into circumstances that spiral into violence and transformation. The narrative doesn’t quite hold
together, resulting in a collection of scenes rather than a disciplined story arc. This makes The Folded Man a frustrating read, as the rhythmic writing style is perfect, and some scenes are so brilliantly dark and engaging that your skin tingles with excitement. Despite not quite hitting the mark, there is more than a glimmer of something great here. Matt Hill is one to watch out for. (Ever Dundas)
War hangs heavy over the small German mountain community of Hindelheim in Jenny Mayhew’s unusual crime novel, set in 1926. WWI has left local constable Hildebrandt crippled and estranged from his adult son, while the war which we know is still to come is prefigured in the bureaucracy and prejudices which surround his investigation into a baby’s death. Hindelheim is far from any grand
political affairs, but their effects play out in microcosm, particularly when a young Jewish man becomes a suspect. As old folktales and primitive beliefs meld with more modern ambitions, the community is stirred into a frenzy which will later take over the country. This isn’t really a crime novel: the mystery is less compelling than the sudden attraction between Hildebrandt and Ute, the baby’s aunt, which surprises them both and is sensitively drawn. Mayhew’s background as a film screenwriter shows in her vivid descriptions, conveyed in slightly formal prose which nods to German language structure. This is a strong, atmospheric debut. (Andrea Mullaney)