The Anatomist [Hardcover]

Federico Andahazi's first novel, 'El Anatomista', won plenty of plaudits when first published in Argentina - not least because the sponsor of one award ironically refused to present it to him, denouncing him as a "communist porn artist" ... thus cementing his literary status and establishing him as a cause célèbre in Latin America. Given that 'The Anatomist' is a book about censorship, it seems fitting that it should be exposed to censorship in its own right - the irony doubly confounded in this instance by the fact that the would be censor was a woman.

The book follows the efforts of Mateo Colombo, a 16th century Venetian physician who became the first European male to document, if not discover, the existence of the clitoris. A man, you'd think, whose efforts might have been celebrated by women, a man who, in his time was threatened and silenced by other men, notably the hierarchy of the Church.

Andahazi's novel moves at a slow but compulsive pace. He treats his subject gently, exploring and uncovering his theme, arousing the reader's interest by careful asides and explorations of Colombo's world. While his namesake discovers the existence of a huge continent - well, two, really - Mateo follows his nose to a much tinier earthly presence. Man, we find, can profit from the plundering of continents, but the pleasuring of women offended the sensibilities of the Church ... and perhaps inflated the inadequacies of too many men. The West would steal two continents, men still struggle to pinch a single clitoris.

'The Anatomist' is a compelling, funny, picaresque tale. Though an historical novel, its themes of science and discovery confronting false morality and genuine hypocrisy are no less relevant than in today's world. Censorship takes many forms, and sexuality and desire are still too often shrouded in mystery.

Mateo Columbo wrote 'De re anatomica', exploring the anatomy of the clitoris, but, while Andahazi's novel is based on historical fact, much of its detail is imaginary and imaginative. Indeed, he seems to deliver two parallel tales, the one, Colombo's obsessive love of a famous courtesan, the other, his compulsive investigation of anatomy and struggle to publish his findings in the face of censorship and an oppressive Church. We get a vision of a man with lofty, scientific ideals, and a man with baser physical desires, a man enraptured by a passion for science and enquiry, and a man obsessed with romantic love and the pursuit of the unattainable.

A funny, fascinating fable, this is a book whose subject can still shock, can still provoke violent reactions. Four hundred and fifty years after Mateo Colombo's discovery, America has been well and truly mapped, and has become the master of self-publicity. Perhaps reading this novel might acquaint you better with the smaller subject and inspire you to follow in Mateo's finger steps.

Very much the first novel of a non-fiction writer, this book brims with interesting historical detail but smells a little of the midnight oil. One has little sense of either the inner life or interactions of his characters, and his compositional style (and perhaps his translators) had improved markedly by the time his second book (Merciful Women) was published.

The leanings of the Catholic church in 16th century Italy were certainly not towards challenging the scientific and metaphysical convictions of the time. This is the oppressive tide that Dr Mateo Colombo struggles to overcome throughought his voyage towards the greater understanding of female sexuality. His goal is to achieve political and scientific acceptance of the clitoris as a potent master of the flesh. The truth is definitely contumacious, the revelations spin up a political and scientific tourbillion. Enjoy the damp decadence of a high priced prostitute's loins, to the sexual volatility of a woman repressed for years, both blessed and burdened with her clitoris that in the hands of her doctor unleashes the demons of her sex. The science is moist and marvellous, the discoveries do not fall short of true renaissance enlightenment status and the backdrop of oppression nearly asphyxiates. A truly intriguing book, vindicating the perseverance of the unknown.