Author: Julian Barnes
Published: 2011
Genre: Novel
The Sense of an Ending is similar to the The Remains of the Day, which I read a month ago. Memory, reflection and the crafting of a story that begins with a mystery. I read and finished it in a fairly short time but the layers of interpretation to the story will probably require a second reading. It's about Tony Webster, a man well into his sixties who is now divorced and leads a quiet, if unexciting life. He is mysteriously bequeathed a journal from a school friend - and this sends him thinking back to his years at school when he met the charismatic Adrian Quinn; who was a mystery to them even back then.
The ownership of the journal is not a simple one, it was left to him by his ex-girlfriend's mother. This leads to a wrangling over the journal with Veronica (his ex), whose intentions about keeping the journal are not revealed to Tony - until the very end. A convoluted plot, which leads to the protagonist reflecting on his past, and in the end still left with questions about all that has come to pass; his awkward years in school, his awkward years in his adult years, and now in his late life. Similarly to The Remains of the Day it focuses on memory, reflection and regret. The ending surprises, and it's only at this stage I saw where the author was leading with his paced meditation on aging.
I will probably wait a couple of years to re-read this.
No comments:
Post a Comment