Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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32 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Gripping, powerful novel, 28 Mar 2008
A convincing portrayal of a loner, a troubled character, Mike Engleby, this is a gripping read that draws you back until it is finished. I was intrigued how this would progress and how his life would play out after the occurences we hear about from his school and college years. The novel tells Engleby's story as seen through his eyes, and it is up to the reader to believe what they will to an extent. Faulks cleverly evokes some degree of sympathy in the reader for Engleby and the lonely world he inhabits, yet we are fearful and chilled by some of his actions and reactions to people and events as the novel progresses. It was interesting to read a novel in which mental illness is dealt with, and compelling, though at times painful, to be inside Engleby's head. Though it doesn't make for an easy read, I really enjoyed this novel, and am glad I picked it up. The period detail of the times he lives through is a thorough and well written backdrop to the events that Engleby recites. I thought the occasional comments that are slipped in about the changes in education over the time period that the novel spans, 70's through to present day, were quite telling.
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177 of 187 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Best book of 2007 so far....., 20 May 2007
This book is phenomenal; it has shot into my top ten books of all time. It takes a lot to make it into this esteemed list and Faulks has certainly delivered a lot here. He is truly a master and this change from his usual style is brilliant. He has moved away from the historical novel to a relatively contemporary setting. The story touches on the themes of education, class, politics, and psychosis. The narrator is Engleby, an undergraduate at Cambridge in the 70's. He is a strange character, a loner and outsider, very much on the fringes of life. He is not particularly pleasant but he is engaging, intelligent and funny. However, there is always something missing from his accounts of his life and the reader can never be sure if they are missing some details. Most of the book takes place inside his mind and since he has `selective memory' he is always one step ahead of the reader. This isn't a book in which a great deal happens but the beauty is in the subtlety.
Faulks' writing style is very lucid and he uses language sparingly; with his books you get none of the 'misty' effect I've noticed in many new books lately where the actual story seems to be lost underneath a mass of unnecessary verbosity. He is perceptive and insightful with a dry sense of humour. His ruminations on the pointlessness of studying English are very, very funny. Faulks is not afraid to offend and that is a refreshing quality in this day and age.
I read this book very quickly as I found myself literally unable to put it down. If you are a Faulks fan this is a must read for you. If you are new to him, Engleby is a great introduction (although don't expect his other works to be similar - they're not.) Every time I open a book I hope that this will be the one that gets me really inspired and keeps me up all night reading; this was the one.
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30 of 33 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Faulks back on form, 27 May 2007
I was beginning to think that Sebastian Faulks had burned out: `On Green Dolphin Street' was a `so what?' novel, with virtually no plotline, just atmospherics, and `Human Traces' has so far resisted all attempts on my part to get past the first few pages.
How refreshing, then, to find the writer striking out in a different direction and rekindling the flame.
It appears another reader has found this book satirical- each to their own, no doubt, but I think it's more worrying because it is intended to be `straight': and bleak with it.
Engleby is not without humour of a wry and self-deprecating kind, but there's nothing funny about the `action' of the novel.
The particular premise with the novel is that its central eponymous character (and narrator) is an increasingly unreliable witness, as the book progresses. We start by believing the biographical gloss that Engleby provides and get entangled in the web of partial and often re-worked memories.
As a reader you warm to this outsider and begin to side with him, but you're also hoodwinked into taking what is said on trust. The occasional jolt occurs through the narrative until you become aware of the level of deception which is being played upon you.
Even when the blinkers are off, I found it hard to discard my initial conception of the narrator/main character.
This novel sucks you in and drags you along and wears its setting (autobiographical?) of Cambridge in the 70s with panache. Highly recommended.
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