Engleby

It takes a lot to find a book that actually gives you goosebumps in the middle of the night. This one did. A genius piece from the Faulksmeister - his best yet. Lucid prose that never verges into self-indulgence, a masterful insight into a disturbing and formidable mind and a thought-provoking discourse on personality, nature/nurture and the whole damn meaning of life. Was a little disappointed by the ending but I'd challenge anyone not to be impressed by this book. Disturbingly I also felt I could associate with Mike (!) on many levels. Worrying.

Chilling but compelling (0/0 people found this helpful)

It sounds paradoxical to say that I didn't like the book or Mike Engleby, its central character, yet I enjoyed reading it to the extent that I didn't want to put it down. `Engleby' is disturbing and thought provoking, a brilliant depiction of a societal misfit abused by his father and emotionally neglected by his mother. Outstandingly intelligent, he obtains a scholarship to a second-rate public school where his classmates ostracise him, and thence to Cambridge.

The story is told as a journal, a one-sided account from the warped perspective of a sick mind. In many ways Engleby seems immune to the opinions of others, although he ponders the exclamation mark when he sees himself referred to as Mike(!) in the diary of Jennifer Arkland, the fellow student with whom he became obsessed.

As the book develops, the revelation when it comes is chilling (to say more would spoil it for those who haven't read it). I wonder if others were as surprised and shocked as I was or whether most readers foresaw what was coming. My failing to see the pointers only serves to exemplify the brilliance of the writing.

It's a book that provokes a strange mixture of abhorrence and sympathy. To create a dislikeable character with whom readers develop even a degree of empathy is tribute to the skill of the writer. This book is as different from Faulks's other works as a sword from a feather, but it's every bit as strong as `Birdsong' and a strangely compelling five-star read. You really ought to try it, but be prepared not to like it.

unforgettable character (0/0 people found this helpful)

Engleby is a character who is rare in fiction and shoudl be much prized - an entirely unsympathetic protagonist who is nontheless totally compelling. The period reserearch that must have been done is also convincibgly threaded through the story, but over all it is the masterfl depiction of a character in extremis that stay with me. At times I fluctuated, patience wise with the narrative, it does seem to drag in places when scenario decsription gets rather bogged down but it's the charactersistaion that wins through every time. if you liked charlotte gray then this is at least three times as good.

Compelling (0/0 people found this helpful)

Engleby marks a departure from Faulks' usual subject matter and style of writing and concentrates instead on the life of Mike Engleby, a loner, who is unable to fit into society.

Throughout the novel, I felt a sense of impending dread, that all of Engleby's life was going to crash down around him at any moment, and although the plot is very different, I found it similar in style to 'Catcher in the Rye', as that too gave me the same sense of uneasiness whilst reading. Having said that, I found the book extremely compelling, with Faulks helping the reader to emphasise with Engleby, in an almost disturbing manner.

I would recommend this book to those who are looking for an interesting and compulsive read, however it is important to note that this is a completely different type of book and style to the majority of Faulks' other novels (Birdsong, Charlotte Gray and The Girl at the Lion D'Or) which were all set during the first and second world wars, and previous fans of Faulks may be disappointed if they were expecting more of the same.

Getting under the skin of an unlikeable central character (0/0 people found this helpful)

I'm constantly impressed by Faulks. I've recently read a couple of books where the central character lacks warmth, likeability, ability to engage the reader, and have felt the lack of 'engagement' created a flaw for the reader. It's a difficult task for a writer, creating a narrator or central character that it will be hard for the reader to engage with, or care about. It's a task which needs an extremely skillful, sensitive and empathic writer, in order to get the reader inside the skin and have some understanding of the 'unlikeable' or 'unsympathetic' character.

Faulks, unlike the couple of other writers with similar disengaged characters, is absolutely brilliant at this.

Engleby, in a later world than one set in the 70s, might almost be seen as suffering from Asperger's. He starts off as a character one can almost have some sympathy for, victim of class bullying in a public school - the source of understanding his character comes completely from his own journal, so inevitably there are no outside assessments of him, other than the reactions of others seen through his own eyes.

I found myself warming to Engleby, and also enjoying some rather dark humour. Without wanting to engage in 'spoilers' there are of course clear pointers for the READER as to the solution of the 'mystery' but we share in the narrator's unawareness, and take his journey. As the novel progresses the early distaste I had for the character begins to return, but again, by the end, I found myself 'holding' both distaste and some compassion.

Faulks continually reminds me of the great romantic realist European writers, particularly Flaubert and Dostoievsky. He can really examine the minutiae of a particular individual in the context of his society, and create understanding both of the individual and a wider view encompassing something universal about each and every one of us, no matter how 'weird' the individual might appear to be.

Sebastian Faulks

Reader Reviews:

Disturbing, unputdownable! (0/0 people found this helpful)

Chilling but compelling (0/0 people found this helpful)

unforgettable character (0/0 people found this helpful)

Compelling (0/0 people found this helpful)

Getting under the skin of an unlikeable central character (0/0 people found this helpful)

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