The Foxes Come at Night: And Other Stories
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Review
'One of the most remarkable writers of our time... The outstanding characteristic of his writing is its elegant intelligence' Alberto Manguel, Guardian.
'Dutch writer Cees Nooteboom's short novels are exquisite toys for the broken-hearted, erudite tales that revolve around themes of loss and despair but are never less than playful' Jonathan Gibbs, Independent.
'The eight stories in ... Cees Nooteboom's latest collection share a Mediterranean setting and lightness and touch which make them ideal holiday-reading' Wayne Gooderham, Time Out.
'Nooteboom ... is full of surprises and makes every word, every observation, not only count but also linger' Eileen Battersby, Irish Times.
'This collection of short stories confirms Nooteboom's reputation for elegance' Adrian Turpin, Financial Times.
'This book will never augment the bestseller charts, but its low-key form bears greater truths than any number of noisily marketed 'masterpieces'. Nooteboom's preoccupations are romantic, but his treatment is not whimsical: close observation, precise imagery and sardonic wit are evident in all the stories ... It is melancholy, but there is conviction in the modest approach that renders this artful work of fiction both wise and beautiful. It is elegantly translated from the Dutch by Ina Rilke' The Literary Review.
'Dutch writer Cees Nooteboom's short novels are exquisite toys for the broken-hearted, erudite tales that revolve around themes of loss and despair but are never less than playful' Jonathan Gibbs, Independent.
'The eight stories in ... Cees Nooteboom's latest collection share a Mediterranean setting and lightness and touch which make them ideal holiday-reading' Wayne Gooderham, Time Out.
'Nooteboom ... is full of surprises and makes every word, every observation, not only count but also linger' Eileen Battersby, Irish Times.
'This collection of short stories confirms Nooteboom's reputation for elegance' Adrian Turpin, Financial Times.
'This book will never augment the bestseller charts, but its low-key form bears greater truths than any number of noisily marketed 'masterpieces'. Nooteboom's preoccupations are romantic, but his treatment is not whimsical: close observation, precise imagery and sardonic wit are evident in all the stories ... It is melancholy, but there is conviction in the modest approach that renders this artful work of fiction both wise and beautiful. It is elegantly translated from the Dutch by Ina Rilke' The Literary Review.
Product Description
Set in the cities and islands of the Mediterranean, and linked thematically, the eight stories in The Foxes Come At Night read more like a novel, a meditation on memory, life and death. Their protagonists collect and reconstruct fragments of lives lived intensely, and now lost, crystallized in memory or in the detail of a photograph. In 'Paula', the narrator evokes the mysterious, brief life of a woman he once loved; in 'Paula II', the same woman is aware of the man thinking of her. No longer a body, she is slowly fading into the distance, remembering the time they spent together, and his fear of the black night when the foxes appear. And yet the tone of these stories is far from pessimistic: it seems that death is nothing to be afraid of. Nooteboom is a superb stylist who observes the world with a combination of melancholy and astonishment. These stories are textured with humour, pathos and vast knowledge, the hallmarks of this outstanding and highly respected European writer.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Cees Nooteboom is one of the great writers of our time, and these stories show that in even his small gestures he can achieve large resonances. The wise melancholy of his prose is immediately identifiable, even in translation (the translation is excellent, by the way). Reading him is not merely a literary but an almost spiritual exercise.
Format:Hardcover
A set of short stories written late in life, full of powerful images, conveying the complexity of human relationships in a sensitive and economical style. lives up to its high reputation
Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta)
Amazon.com:
1 review
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
"On our epic journey from nothing to nowhere...."
1 Feb 2012
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
These eight "stories" by the brilliant Cees Nooteboom (in yet another excellent translation by Ina Rilke) all concern relationships among life, death and memory. If you enjoy contemplating the important questions in life, you have come to the right place. Nooteboom begins with an excerpt from Raymond Chandler:
"You might have got yourself a story," I said. "Sure. But up here we're just people."
The point, I believe,is the people are the story. Photographs and the emotions they evoke, who is remembered and what is remembered about them, take us to a heightened awareness of how we are living and how we want to live. The stories at times consider the implications of the idea that we truly and finally die when we fade from memory.
If we die when we fade from memory, then, though aware of death, fear of death must not rule our lives; instead we should focus on how we want to live and how we affect others. It is difficult to describe just what Nooteboom is doing here. Perhaps an example will help: "There's just a handful of people scattered over the globe, male/female, who provide the salt of my existence, shall we say...People you mourn when they die, but also, and that's the crux, prior to their demise, people you find yourself grieving for even when you are still laughing about them."
These stories make us ask: who is remembered, and for what? Take a look at your old photos. Think about those people, their voices, their laughs. A death (life) is at the center of each story, except the last, The Furthermost Point, which describes a sort of ritual raging dance with gale-force winds. One feels advised to live, to face nature's forces head-on, to seek the furthermost point. "How far gone can you be if there's still someone laying flowers on your grave after forty years?" This book is engaging, beautifully crafted (and translated) but most strikingly profound in the way Nooteboom's descriptions of people and memory guide us, if we allow.
"You might have got yourself a story," I said. "Sure. But up here we're just people."
The point, I believe,is the people are the story. Photographs and the emotions they evoke, who is remembered and what is remembered about them, take us to a heightened awareness of how we are living and how we want to live. The stories at times consider the implications of the idea that we truly and finally die when we fade from memory.
If we die when we fade from memory, then, though aware of death, fear of death must not rule our lives; instead we should focus on how we want to live and how we affect others. It is difficult to describe just what Nooteboom is doing here. Perhaps an example will help: "There's just a handful of people scattered over the globe, male/female, who provide the salt of my existence, shall we say...People you mourn when they die, but also, and that's the crux, prior to their demise, people you find yourself grieving for even when you are still laughing about them."
These stories make us ask: who is remembered, and for what? Take a look at your old photos. Think about those people, their voices, their laughs. A death (life) is at the center of each story, except the last, The Furthermost Point, which describes a sort of ritual raging dance with gale-force winds. One feels advised to live, to face nature's forces head-on, to seek the furthermost point. "How far gone can you be if there's still someone laying flowers on your grave after forty years?" This book is engaging, beautifully crafted (and translated) but most strikingly profound in the way Nooteboom's descriptions of people and memory guide us, if we allow.
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