Sign in with Facebook
dianne b.'s Reviews > The Sea
The Sea
by
by
“The autumn sun fell slantwise into the yard, making the cobbles bluely shine, and in the porch a pot of geraniums flourished aloft their last burning blossoms of the season. Honestly, this world.�
The longer I pause before writing anything about this book, the more I think I should read it again, before writing anything at all.
Suddenly I think I know what Chloe was thinking when she went into the water that day (and Myles followed, as he always did). Yes, I do.
The Sea gains more stars the more I ponder it. With time, I almost forget how furious I was at the constant need for my dictionary. Was this some Old Etonian joke? Then (ha ha) he pretends to forget the name of the very common Duputren’s contractures as he describes them in the Colonel’s hand.
But then I am charmed with another detail about the Colonel:
“There is a spread too that he prepares himself, he calls it slap, khaki-coloured goo involving anchovies, curry powder, a great deal of pepper, and other, unnamed things; it smells, curiously, of dog. ‘A great scourer for the bag.� he says. It took me a while to realise that this bag of which he often speaks, though never in Miss V’s presence, is the stomach and environs. He is ever alive to the state of the bag.
All is forgiven when the narrator, curmudgeon that he is, reminds of my beloved father who would say things like: “I think God is angry at me because he knows I don’t believe in him.� ARB
“I do not entertain the possibility of an afterlife, or any deity capable of offering it. Given the world that he created, it would be an impiety against God to believe in him.�
The longer I pause before writing anything about this book, the more I think I should read it again, before writing anything at all.
Suddenly I think I know what Chloe was thinking when she went into the water that day (and Myles followed, as he always did). Yes, I do.
The Sea gains more stars the more I ponder it. With time, I almost forget how furious I was at the constant need for my dictionary. Was this some Old Etonian joke? Then (ha ha) he pretends to forget the name of the very common Duputren’s contractures as he describes them in the Colonel’s hand.
But then I am charmed with another detail about the Colonel:
“There is a spread too that he prepares himself, he calls it slap, khaki-coloured goo involving anchovies, curry powder, a great deal of pepper, and other, unnamed things; it smells, curiously, of dog. ‘A great scourer for the bag.� he says. It took me a while to realise that this bag of which he often speaks, though never in Miss V’s presence, is the stomach and environs. He is ever alive to the state of the bag.
All is forgiven when the narrator, curmudgeon that he is, reminds of my beloved father who would say things like: “I think God is angry at me because he knows I don’t believe in him.� ARB
“I do not entertain the possibility of an afterlife, or any deity capable of offering it. Given the world that he created, it would be an impiety against God to believe in him.�
Sign into ŷ to see if any of your friends have read
The Sea.
Sign In »
Reading Progress
Started Reading
October 22, 2022
–
Finished Reading
October 24, 2022
– Shelved
Comments Showing 1-6 of 6 (6 new)
date
newest »
newest »
message 1:
by
Fionnuala
(new)
-
added it
Nov 04, 2022 01:28AM
Ah! I loved reading your delight in this book—my favourite Banville by a long shot, and I've read more than a few.
reply
|
flag
Fionnuala, it was delightful. In all the fine details. I think it was that exquisite memory and eye for detail ("Honestly, this world.") that tells us how in love with it he is. At one point he says he was born to be a dilettante, and I think, aren't we all if we could only find funding?
"The Sea gains more stars the more I ponder it"What a lovely way to put it - and deserved.
Cecily wrote: ""The Sea gains more stars the more I ponder it"What a lovely way to put it - and deserved."
Thank you, Cecily.
This book, so like the frustratingly charming old crust in it, just seems to grow in depth and sweetness with time and retrospection. It's a definite re-read...someday.
Dianne: Reading your review of the John Banville novel evokes memories of my own very pleasant experience with it. But more than that, I am moved by your comment about the lingering impact The Sea, or any book can have on its reader. Bill
Quo wrote: "Dianne: Reading your review of the John Banville novel evokes memories of my own very pleasant experience with it. But more than that, I am moved by your comment about the lingering impact The Sea,..."Thanks for your comments, Bill. This is such an atmospheric novel, it does seem as though it creates its own sense of memory, as though we've been somewhere, done something that we should remember after reading it, doesn't it?
I suppose that's why great books are read repeatedly. They are the place, at least for me, where - in some way - I can go home again.
