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mahmoudelhakim's review
3.0
The format is very interesting and full of possibilities. I just felt slightly disappointed towards the end of the book. I loved the writing itself, but I was left wanting something more. Perhaps in efforts to mimic the anxiety ridden mind, it just felt repetitive towards the end. Also, some of it felt preachy, and the time-relevant political anxieties (Early Trump) were forced and fueled by some forced characterization and virtue-signaling. I mean I loved the tangents, but a tangent of saying universal basic income is a “no brainer” (which, yeah, it sure is) feels much more performative than should be expected in an internal monologue. It feels contrived. Also, I could have done without the Obama thirst tbh.
blessi's review
3.0
The Guest Lecture by Martin Riker is one of those novels that intrigues and piques attention at the initial view of the synopsis. Its premise captures the very semblance of what everyone experiences: lying awake at night, spiraling and ruminating into an endless stream of consciousness. For this, it follows the reflections and reveries of a woman named Abigail, a feminist cramming in the middle of the night for an economics lecture she will have to give the next day. Lying down, sleepless in a hotel bed, she takes on a mental excursion of assigning each part of the speech to different rooms in her house, where she imagines having a conversation and presenting her internal monologue to the late John Maynard Keynes.
As a literary fiction, it feels reminiscent of Matt Haig’s novel The Midnight Library (2020) and Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol (1843). It is as though a literal rendering of the question, ‘If you could meet anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?’ For this one, the late English economist Keynes is the figment of imagination or the resident phantom that guides the protagonist throughout her one long midnight crisis. The central thesis centers on Keynes’s short article, post-World War I, titled “Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren,” but then it spirals into existential questioning of Abigail concerning all her life choices.
It feels bizarre and erratic as nocturnal muddled thoughts are supposed to be, but this is also what makes it even more engaging, albeit confusing too. The narration oscillates between macroeconomics, socio-political issues, and the personal backstories of the main character, and thus it can feel very taxing, even dull or dense at times. Even the book describes this feeling when it critiques John Cage’s essays and lectures and states, ‘his compositions were half the time hauntingly beautiful and the other half just sort of meh,’ that is how it feels reading it; it is one of those less-than-300-page novels that feels so long.
Much of it encompasses an overwhelming amount of technical information which may or may not make sense. At times, it is as though reading an academic monograph — but it seems that the bottom line is that the protagonist herself, a self-proclaimed failure, tries to make sense of the optimistic possibilities and promises that Keynes’ paper presupposes for the future generation, whatever that means. What does it mean when in current times, the world is reeling from its ever-growing upheaval of racial capitalism, corporate greed, media manipulation, oligarchy, gender inequality, climate crisis, and among other things?
Each of which the novel unfolds in juxtaposition with rhetoric, idealism, and utopia: the main concepts which the protagonist implies in Keynes’ predictions. Underneath it all — Abigail is coming to terms with the rejection of her tenure at the university. How does it transpire, and what leads up to this failure? Whether these choices and outcomes are nature or nurture-based. It talks about career insecurities and uncertainties, imposter syndrome, the helplessness of reaching out because of titles and roles, the prevalence of loneliness in preparing for a speech, in the hollows of college and adulthood, in the corners of finding purpose and true calling versus choosing meaningless practical jobs; joining the rat race and the state of being stuck in this path for not working hard enough in high school and the lack of ambition.
So on and so forth, the list goes on. It is a lot to take in, but it is also a faithful representation of how it feels to contemplate oneself, others, and the world at large; the weight, prism, vastness, and caveats of deep thinking about life. How the world works, in comparison with and in contrast to what goes on inside each person. Literature calls this “person versus self” and “person versus society—” and that is the beauty of this novel. For all its long ramblings and uncomfortable feelings, it still tries to be cerebral; it is as if listening to a friend ranting and peeling off layers and layers of issues but still trying to put things in perspective. While it is not an action-filled novel with no major plot twist or particular climax, its mind-racing and self-debating prose is so profound, philosophical, and thought-provoking that it is still as though reading an adventure genre. That feeling of wanting to know more, but if not, it is simply cathartic.
As a literary fiction, it feels reminiscent of Matt Haig’s novel The Midnight Library (2020) and Charles Dickens’s A Christmas Carol (1843). It is as though a literal rendering of the question, ‘If you could meet anyone, dead or alive, who would it be?’ For this one, the late English economist Keynes is the figment of imagination or the resident phantom that guides the protagonist throughout her one long midnight crisis. The central thesis centers on Keynes’s short article, post-World War I, titled “Economic Possibilities for Our Grandchildren,” but then it spirals into existential questioning of Abigail concerning all her life choices.
It feels bizarre and erratic as nocturnal muddled thoughts are supposed to be, but this is also what makes it even more engaging, albeit confusing too. The narration oscillates between macroeconomics, socio-political issues, and the personal backstories of the main character, and thus it can feel very taxing, even dull or dense at times. Even the book describes this feeling when it critiques John Cage’s essays and lectures and states, ‘his compositions were half the time hauntingly beautiful and the other half just sort of meh,’ that is how it feels reading it; it is one of those less-than-300-page novels that feels so long.
Much of it encompasses an overwhelming amount of technical information which may or may not make sense. At times, it is as though reading an academic monograph — but it seems that the bottom line is that the protagonist herself, a self-proclaimed failure, tries to make sense of the optimistic possibilities and promises that Keynes’ paper presupposes for the future generation, whatever that means. What does it mean when in current times, the world is reeling from its ever-growing upheaval of racial capitalism, corporate greed, media manipulation, oligarchy, gender inequality, climate crisis, and among other things?
Each of which the novel unfolds in juxtaposition with rhetoric, idealism, and utopia: the main concepts which the protagonist implies in Keynes’ predictions. Underneath it all — Abigail is coming to terms with the rejection of her tenure at the university. How does it transpire, and what leads up to this failure? Whether these choices and outcomes are nature or nurture-based. It talks about career insecurities and uncertainties, imposter syndrome, the helplessness of reaching out because of titles and roles, the prevalence of loneliness in preparing for a speech, in the hollows of college and adulthood, in the corners of finding purpose and true calling versus choosing meaningless practical jobs; joining the rat race and the state of being stuck in this path for not working hard enough in high school and the lack of ambition.
So on and so forth, the list goes on. It is a lot to take in, but it is also a faithful representation of how it feels to contemplate oneself, others, and the world at large; the weight, prism, vastness, and caveats of deep thinking about life. How the world works, in comparison with and in contrast to what goes on inside each person. Literature calls this “person versus self” and “person versus society—” and that is the beauty of this novel. For all its long ramblings and uncomfortable feelings, it still tries to be cerebral; it is as if listening to a friend ranting and peeling off layers and layers of issues but still trying to put things in perspective. While it is not an action-filled novel with no major plot twist or particular climax, its mind-racing and self-debating prose is so profound, philosophical, and thought-provoking that it is still as though reading an adventure genre. That feeling of wanting to know more, but if not, it is simply cathartic.
megank27's review
challenging
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
This will go on my “wish I could read again for the first time” list. Completely different from what I expected. Experimental format with a main character who puts a voice to the inner struggles we all deal with in different forms. Exquisite.
heydeih's review
4.0
I wish my stream of consciousness was this eloquent instead of pure, unadulterated screaming
maddie7217's review
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.5
pinaybibliophile's review
4.0
It's about an economics teacher who lectures on John Maynard Keynes and his essay written in 1930 - which succinctly captures the mood of that time - entitled "Economic Possibilities for our Grandchildren." As an Econ major, I simply couldn't resist this book. This is written in stream of consciousness narrative which is bursting with thoughts on philosophy, sociology, literature, culture, marriage, motherhood and of course, economics. I had fun reading this.
adamkol's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
msilbs's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
ananya33's review
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5