Saturday, February 15, 2003. Henry Perowne is a contented man - a successful neurosurgeon, the devoted husband of Rosalind, a newspaper lawyer, and proud father of two grown-up children, one a promising poet, the other a talented blues musician. Unusually, he wakes before dawn, drawn to the window of his bedroom and filled with a growing unease. What troubles him as he looks out at the night sky is the state of the world - the impending war against Iraq, a gathering pessimism since 9/11, and a fear that his city, its openness and diversity, and his happy family life are under threat. Later, Perowne makes his way to his weekly squash game through London streets filled with hundreds of thousands of anti-war protestors. A minor car accident brings him into a confrontation with Baxter, a fidgety, aggressive, young man, on the edge of violence. To Perowne's professional eye, there appears to be something profoundly wrong with him. Towards the end of a day rich in incident and filled with Perowne's celebrations of life's pleasures - music, food, love, the exhilarations of sport and the satisfactions of exacting work - his family gathers for a reunion. But with the sudden appearance of Baxter, Perowne's earlier fears seem about to be realised. Ian McEwan's last novel, Atonement, was hailed as a masterpiece all over the world. Saturday shares its confident, graceful prose and its remarkable perceptiveness, but is perhaps even more dramatically compelling, showing how life can change in an instant, for better or for worse. It is the work of a writer at the very height of his powers.
Saturday
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Amazon Review
The critical response to Saturday must be making Ian McEwan a very happy man (not that his virtually unassailable position as Britain’s leading novelist has been in doubt). While contemporaries (and rivals) Martin Amis and Will Self have had much more hit-or-miss records recently, each new McEwan novel gleans a host of plaudits, and Atonement has been generally hailed as his masterpiece. Saturday may not enjoy quite such acclaim, but it’s a remarkably accomplished piece of work, as richly drawn and characterised as anything he has written.
McEwan's protagonist is neurosurgeon Henry Perowne, a man comfortably ensconced in an enviable upper middle class existence. His wife is a successful newspaper lawyer, his daughter Daisy a budding poet. But as he wakes one Saturday morning and witnesses a plane accident through his window, he is not yet aware that this is a harbinger of a sustained assault on all that he holds dear. It’s a McEwan trademark to begin his novels with a striking or violent rupture of everyday existence, but this opening is a prelude to his most impressively sustained narrative yet. It’s the publication day of Henry’s daughter's poetry collection, but a chance encounter with a drunken trio emerging from a lap-dancing club ends violently, even as a march against the war in Iraq streams past nearby. And this encounter with the menacing Baxter, main antagonist of the group, is to have fateful consequences. As Saturday progresses, Henry is forced to examine every aspect of his life and beliefs, not least his attitude to the war.
Unlike many of his peers, McEwan is not content to reduce the issues of the war to simple opposition, in which Tony Blair is characterised as a war criminal. Henry has treated a victim of Saddam's brutality, and although a comic encounter with the Prime Minister himself is a highlight of the book, both Henry (and his creator) are obliged to consider the complex skein of the conflict from all sides. While there are missteps (the poetic daughter, Daisy, is thinly drawn), McEwan's invigorating and trenchant novel is an unmissable experience. --Barry Forshaw
Review
Dazzling. Profound and urgent (Observer )
The supreme novelist of his generation (Sunday Times )
He remains at the top of his game - assured, accomplished and ambitious (Daily Telegraph )
Richly laden. McEwan pulls out all the stops. A rich book, sensuous and thoughtful. McEwan has found in Saturday the right form to showcase his dazzling talents (Sunday Telegraph )
A book of great moral maturity, beautifully alive to the fragility of happiness and all forms of violence... Everyone should read Saturday... Artistically, morally and politically, he excels (The Times ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
The supreme novelist of his generation (Sunday Times )
He remains at the top of his game - assured, accomplished and ambitious (Daily Telegraph )
Richly laden. McEwan pulls out all the stops. A rich book, sensuous and thoughtful. McEwan has found in Saturday the right form to showcase his dazzling talents (Sunday Telegraph )
A book of great moral maturity, beautifully alive to the fragility of happiness and all forms of violence... Everyone should read Saturday... Artistically, morally and politically, he excels (The Times ) --This text refers to the Paperback edition.
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Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
27 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
It was surprising to find so many 1- and 2-star reviews here at Amazon. "Saturday" has a lot going for it. Much has been made of the technical impressiveness of McEwan's prose; his meticulous research into multiple topics; the attention to detail in the stream-of-conciousness narration of the central character, whose constantly calculating approach to life seemed entirely fitting for a brain surgeon (sorry, "neurosurgeon").
I found the meditations on the state of society and current affairs of 2003 particularly satisfying. One of the best sections was the argument between Daisy and Henry about the rationale for the Iraq war, youthful moral absolutism on the one hand and sloppy pragmatic consequentialism on the other. (My own position on this issue has oscillated between the two over the last six years.) There were some gripping moments (I won't spoil things by going into detail) and, perhaps, some clever allegorical points being made - invasive brain surgery being contrasted with invasive military action, for example. And I'm pretty sure that learning how Henry thinks has, in a small way, changed how I think, for the better.
On the other hand, it was equally surprising to find serious critics absolutely bowled over by this novel; words like "dazzling" and "stunning" seem to crop up a lot in reviews. They all seem to ignore the novel's most obvious flaw: a family of uniformly high achievers will not only be not particularly likeable, but, when the achievements are *this* impressive, almost certain not to exist.... Read more ›
I found the meditations on the state of society and current affairs of 2003 particularly satisfying. One of the best sections was the argument between Daisy and Henry about the rationale for the Iraq war, youthful moral absolutism on the one hand and sloppy pragmatic consequentialism on the other. (My own position on this issue has oscillated between the two over the last six years.) There were some gripping moments (I won't spoil things by going into detail) and, perhaps, some clever allegorical points being made - invasive brain surgery being contrasted with invasive military action, for example. And I'm pretty sure that learning how Henry thinks has, in a small way, changed how I think, for the better.
On the other hand, it was equally surprising to find serious critics absolutely bowled over by this novel; words like "dazzling" and "stunning" seem to crop up a lot in reviews. They all seem to ignore the novel's most obvious flaw: a family of uniformly high achievers will not only be not particularly likeable, but, when the achievements are *this* impressive, almost certain not to exist.... Read more ›
12 of 12 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is my first ever review, but im sorry to say, I found this novel disappointing.
Firstly it was too descriptive, with a really slow pace. It took me many sitting to finish this book (as I do not believe in not finishing).
The plot was effectively the self glorification of a successful man, with pointless banter and jargon from his life, as a hospital physician myself I found the medical references dull, repetitive and unnecessary, it feels as though the author was trying to show off how many phrases and terms they could use from a medical dictionary, why?
I am not claiming that I can write a novel, but it does concern me when I read books which feel to be a nonsensical combination of waffle, the plot was pointless. The main character left his wife after a major crime to perform an operation on the perpetrator at the end, which is socially and professionally questionable. Also a man with an early neuropsychiatric illness being swayed by a reading of poetry, was the icing on the cake, I could not even comprehend such words and find their beauty let alone an irrational man.
Whenever I read anything fact or fiction, I always try to reflect and gain a learning point from it, but I am struggling to come up with one for this book. Perhaps: don't use inappropriate jargon as it can be unnecessary and pointless.
I have not read any other books by this author but I hope they are much better than this.
Firstly it was too descriptive, with a really slow pace. It took me many sitting to finish this book (as I do not believe in not finishing).
The plot was effectively the self glorification of a successful man, with pointless banter and jargon from his life, as a hospital physician myself I found the medical references dull, repetitive and unnecessary, it feels as though the author was trying to show off how many phrases and terms they could use from a medical dictionary, why?
I am not claiming that I can write a novel, but it does concern me when I read books which feel to be a nonsensical combination of waffle, the plot was pointless. The main character left his wife after a major crime to perform an operation on the perpetrator at the end, which is socially and professionally questionable. Also a man with an early neuropsychiatric illness being swayed by a reading of poetry, was the icing on the cake, I could not even comprehend such words and find their beauty let alone an irrational man.
Whenever I read anything fact or fiction, I always try to reflect and gain a learning point from it, but I am struggling to come up with one for this book. Perhaps: don't use inappropriate jargon as it can be unnecessary and pointless.
I have not read any other books by this author but I hope they are much better than this.
45 of 48 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Why is Ian McEwan so successful? Is it because his rich understanding of literature and science create a vital lens on our times? Or is it because the literate classes can so easily identify with his firmly middle-class viewpoint (see every main character for the last ten years). Like Atonement, the main character (Perowne, a neurologist) has that mixture of vague musing about how the less fortunate live and barely disguised fear of Baxter, a maladjusted type, this time 'with Simian features'. Honestly, how much closer can you get to dehumanising the less fortunate? Obviously this elevates Perowne to the paragon of man, flexing his mind and his muscles in a squash game while Baxter spends his time lounging in Spearmint Rhino. This is every male, middle-class professional 's fantasy version of himself, with all base urges assigned to the 'lower class' character. Like Atonement, Saturday includes scenes of hard-to-swallow heroism from Perowne and his arty children (yeah right) when by that point I was on Baxter's side, hoping he'd set fire to their Oriental rug or something. Of course, McEwan chooses to bring him close to raping the daughter instead, just to underline that he's no better than an animal. But instead he reads the daughter's poetry, gets all emotional about it and doesn't do any damage. This must be one of the most laughable moments in the history of literature, and epitomises this writer's problem. Instead of keeping one foot in the plausible, McEwan uses the dramatic climax to champion the transforming power of literature. But since its effect is attributed to Baxter's neurological and emotional condition, McEwan is just subtly and smugly stating that the 'lower classes' are otherwise morons and no better than animals.... Read more ›
17 of 18 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Saturday is a day in the life of Henry Perowne, a Fitzrovia Square dwelling neurosurgeon. The book follows an eventful day in his life, describing & detailing every thought he has about his surroundings, family, coworkers and generally his life. When a minor traffic accident brings unwelcome elements into his life, his diurnal evaluations will count for nothing as a series of coincidences threaten his very way of life.
For the first 30 pages I was absolutely captivated by this book, a simple description of Henry waking up in the middle of the night to a state of uncanny alertness and feeling a compulsion to walk to the window, only to see a burning jet making an emergency landing into Heathrow was simply magical.
The rest of the book follows suit well, but doesn't recapture the initial hypnosis. McEwan's writing style makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck sometimes. The characters are well fleshed out as often trivial events in Henry's life trigger a spiral into introspective asides detailing his past and his feelings towards the components of his existence. As a result you get to understand the inner workings of Henry's mind, what propels, feeds and most importantly, drives him. The book is set in 2003's London, on the day of the anti-Iraq-war protests and the vivid descriptions of his meanderings around Charlotte, Gower & University Street are true to life, a great touch to an already great book if you know the area.
It is after we have gained a very comprehensive grasp of who Henry is that he is thrown into turmoil and you read with baited breath waiting to see whether he will live upto your expectations of the character. Simply electric reading, I struggled to put this book down.... Read more ›
For the first 30 pages I was absolutely captivated by this book, a simple description of Henry waking up in the middle of the night to a state of uncanny alertness and feeling a compulsion to walk to the window, only to see a burning jet making an emergency landing into Heathrow was simply magical.
The rest of the book follows suit well, but doesn't recapture the initial hypnosis. McEwan's writing style makes the hairs stand up on the back of my neck sometimes. The characters are well fleshed out as often trivial events in Henry's life trigger a spiral into introspective asides detailing his past and his feelings towards the components of his existence. As a result you get to understand the inner workings of Henry's mind, what propels, feeds and most importantly, drives him. The book is set in 2003's London, on the day of the anti-Iraq-war protests and the vivid descriptions of his meanderings around Charlotte, Gower & University Street are true to life, a great touch to an already great book if you know the area.
It is after we have gained a very comprehensive grasp of who Henry is that he is thrown into turmoil and you read with baited breath waiting to see whether he will live upto your expectations of the character. Simply electric reading, I struggled to put this book down.... Read more ›
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3.3 out of 5 stars
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
3.5-4stars. Impressive prose made a somewhat slow storyline enjoyable
I'd never read any of McEwan's books and after reading the other reviews I wasn't expecting to like this book and so I'd left it at the bottom of my pile of secondhand books for... Read more
Published 8 days ago by J Hutch
5.0 out of 5 stars
Thoroughly enjoyable read
This one of my favourite Ian McEwan books - it is pacey and exciting and very well written as usual with a good insight into the characters. Read more
Published 25 days ago by GOS
3.0 out of 5 stars
Well written but the pace is inconsistent
On the whole I enjoyed this book. I was amazed at how well the author could articulate the inner workings of the protagonist's mind, and I frequently related to Perowne's musings. Read more
Published 1 month ago by Sarah
5.0 out of 5 stars
What an idea!
This another excellent book full of suspense and expectation. It is about the life of brain surgeon and what happens to him and his family on one Saturday. Read more
Published 2 months ago by dotmac
2.0 out of 5 stars
Over-written
The most helpful review for this book by muddy-funster just about says it all. I was given Saturday because "he's a great writer". Read more
Published 4 months ago by Jeth500
5.0 out of 5 stars
Brilliant description of one man's traumatic day.
This is one of McEwan's best novels. Extremely thoughtful and believable. You feel you know him and his family at the end of the day.
Published 5 months ago by Art
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fabulous
One of McEwan's best books, a really gripping read. Loved this book and read it in a week. I would highly recommend.
Published 6 months ago by Pen Name
1.0 out of 5 stars
McEwan's misappropriation of history
Ian McEwan is a technically accomplished writer incapable of writing a bad sentence. He is, however, eminently capable of combining them into third-rate novels, and 'Saturday',... Read more
Published 7 months ago by Donmeh Junkie
5.0 out of 5 stars
A wonderful book.....
A day in the life of Henry Perowne, neurosurgeon, set against the background of the anti-Iraq war march in London. Read more
Published 7 months ago by Wynne Kelly
3.0 out of 5 stars
Mirror, mirror on the wall!
I have only just read this novel, given to me by a friend clearing out her unwanted books. I found the story O.K. Read more
Published 8 months ago by A Glasgow Girl
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