BOOKS | Reviews
FICTION HELEN OYEYEMI Boy, Snow, Bird (PICADOR) ●●●●●
Named as one of Granta’s Best Young British Novelists in 2013, Helen Oyeyemi confidently justifies that accolade with her fifth novel, a powerful intertwining of fairytale and reality. Like all the best fairytales, its deceptively simple surface slowly shifts to reveal dark and troubling truths underneath.
The story is much better discovered upon reading than in a briefly summarised description, but it is not giving too much away to say that the book’s title names its three main characters, or that the story begins in 1930s Manhattan with Boy, a 20-year-old girl, running away from her abusive father to seek a new life. Boy, Snow and Bird are brilliant creations, and
through these three appealing and mysterious characters Oyeyemi examines female identity in all its delightful and terrifying complexity. Fairytale tropes abound – an evil stepmother, a magic mirror – and are explored in this story of how mothers, daughters and sisters shape each other, while the tricksy nature of mirrors is a recurring theme that leads to questions of self-image, self-deception and what it takes to be ‘the fairest of them all’. Oyeyemi is a master of language; her writing is beautiful and precise, and her ability to hide deep meaning in unassuming words is breathtaking. This is perhaps most true of the book’s title, which holds the key to all of the story’s surprises. This is a bewitching book, in every way. (Paul Gallagher)
FANTASY JOANNE HARRIS The Gospel of Loki (Gollancz) ●●●●● SCI-FI KENNETH CALHOUN Black Moon (Vintage) ●●●●●
SHORT STORIES BEN MARCUS Leaving the Sea (Granta) ●●●●● SHORT STORIES AL KENNEDY All the Rage (Jonathan Cape) ●●●●●
Between comic books and blockbuster success, it’s easy to forget when the Asgardian subset of the Avengers existed without that Hollywood polish. But The Gospel of Loki revisits those Norse tales and verses of old, opting for a modern retelling through everyone’s favourite trickster. Recruitment from the realm of
Chaos through his many deceptions gives a real narrative voice to Loki, both sarcastic and on point, that encompasses his famed godly delusions. The ambitious conversion of Norse mythology to today’s dialect causes smirks at unexpected phrases, yet maintains Loki’s narcissistic and, at times, jaded perspective. ‘Now it’s my turn to take the
stage,’ he claims, often outshining surrounding archetypal characters who excel only when targeted for downfall or as part of an elaborate trick. Loki’s current standing in pop culture makes this an enjoyable opportunity to hear the tales of his flame-haired roots, familiar or otherwise, told through the voice of the silver-tongued devil himself. (Heather McDaid)
38 THE LIST 20 Feb–20 Mar 2014
‘Gradually, then suddenly’, according to Ernest Hemingway, is how a man goes broke – and it’s also how society falls apart when insomnia claims the world. Anyone who can still sleep is in danger, as insomniacs are driven into a rage at the sight of another sleeping.
Black Moon follows a disconnected band of sleepers: owl-masked teenager Lila; Chase, looting chemists for drugs; Biggs, trawling the city for his missing wife; Felicia, searching for a cure at a sleep research lab.
Although the source is insomnia rather than a virus, this is a zombie story in all but name. Calhoun’s choppy style of switching between characters and places won’t be to everyone’s taste, but it works perfectly for the subject matter. What better way to show the disconnection we feel when we haven’t slept? Considering its vast canvas and exciting subject, it’s no surprise that the novel has already been optioned for film.
Black Moon is a thoughtful, literary survival tale that will appeal to fans of Peter Heller’s The Dog Stars and Karen Thompson Walker’s The Age of Miracles. (Kirsty Logan)
2012’s critically acclaimed The Flame Alphabet may have established Ben Marcus as a novel writer of note, but this new short story collection reminds us that he’s still one of the most innovative writers of the concise form around. Leaving the Sea (his first collection since a 1995 debut with The Age of Wire and String) is a fascinating showcase of Marcus’ stylistic range, though the stories are all linked by a heady mix of dystopia, absurdity and detached male protagonists. At first, we’re plunged into a series of straightforward tales: Paul tries to reconnect with his family after a violent episode in their past; Mather attempts to balance caring for a sick child with going to work; Edward is chastised by rigid officials for trying to save his parents during a town emergency drill. As you wade further in, the collection
becomes more experimental and sometimes quite challenging, but Marcus balances out the darker, more intense moments with a few well-placed comic lines. It’s certainly an absorbing collection, and marks out the author as an eclectic and valuable talent. (Yasmin Sulaiman)
AL Kennedy’s astonishing skill with words is showcased in this short story collection, themed around love and relationships. In the opening story, ‘Late in Life’, a couple – a young woman and older man – stand in a bank queue. They have just drawn up his will, and are now about to pay off her mortgage.
Teasing and bantering with each
other, the pair make jokes about their future together and what music she’ll play at his funeral; meanwhile their fears and vulnerabilities, a profound mutual affection and the reality that he will probably die long before she does bubble just under the surface. Unflinching honesty and stream-of-
consciousness prose characterise the book, right up to the final entry, a pin- sharp dissection of an excruciating first date. Elsewhere, we witness infidelities and forbidden longings, dead-eyed sex and an unwanted dildo. The book is filled with lyrical beauty, wry humour and acute observation, imbued by a willingness to dig deep and give voice to the reader’s rawest emotions. All the Rage is an outstanding collection, full of stories to be savoured. (Ally Nicholl)