We That Are Young

"She is, but her novel doesn’t feel like it’s been written by an academic, whereas Compass is full of academics. I have to say while I did love it, it wasn’t an uncomplicated reading experience for me. It’s a reworking of King Lear , and if you really love King Lear , as I do, it actually it makes it quite a weird read, because you’re constantly guessing at what the author is doing: ‘Ah, is she doing this here?’ ‘Is she subverting that?’ ‘Is this supposed to be read like this?’ etc. It would read like a loud, raucous and rambunctious, multifaceted, classic Anglo-Indian novel, full of characters, lots of colour, lots of light, lots of voices… creating a really immersive reading experience. But for me, the text actually moved in and out of focus as I read it. I was absolutely immersed one moment and then jolted out of it, asking myself: ‘Is this? … who is this? … Oh, right.’ The flitting between levels may be a bit problematic for some, but it is an interesting, intellectually stimulating experience to watch what she’s doing with Shakespeare’s biggest and most emotionally exhausting work. Yes, the writer is putting up certain hurdles between the reader and the novel. Interestingly, Galley Beggar’s last novel, Forbidden Line [2016] by Paul Stanbridge, was a rewriting of Don Quixote . That played really fast and loose with the original – that really was, without a doubt, a novel with its own original genius in it."