This is a novel in
two parts, the first successful, the second totally lost me...
Bianchi's writing
gives a strong sense of person and of place – and I think that is
maintained throughout the book. The problem is that I failed to
follow the narrative in the second half.
The first half is
typical small town, social realism, kitchen sink stuff – perhaps it
is not pushing any literary envelopes but it is well written and
engaging. I believed in Daniel, identified with him even.
The second half is …
well the trouble is I am not really sure what it is.
There is a well worn
literary trick to build an essentially ordinary character, which
draws the reader in, and then throw them, the character, into some
extra-ordinary situation, and so through the prior relationship of
the reader to the character take the reader on that extra-ordinary
journey too.
This is clearly what
Bianchi attempts – but somewhere along the way I got lost and
didn't get to the destination...
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