Scan barcode
msand3's review against another edition
4.0
In the final ten years of his life, dying from the strain of syphilis that caused his body to fluctuate between paralysis and uncontrollable spasms, Daudet complied this journal of notes on pain for a piece of fiction that he was never able to write. It's a stark and sobering read, with the first half being an attempt to describe living through constant pain and torture: "Are words actually any use to describe what pain (or passion, for the matter) really feels like? Words only come when everything is over, when things have calmed down. They refer only to memory, and are either powerless or untruthful. No general theory about pain. Each patient discovers his own, and the nature of pain varies, like a singer's voice, according to the acoustics of the hall." The second half sketches the daily routines and patients at Lamalou, a sanitarium with therapeutic baths.
While Daudet is a pitiable figure as a once-lauded writer who has been all but forgotten, the introduction makes an even sadder observation that Daudet also plays second fiddle in the list of great French syphilitics (Baudelaire, Flaubert, and Maupassant). The footnotes provide much information about his personal life--especially his treatment for syphilis, which sounds like the most painful, lingering death a person might suffer. In the words of Daudet: "You have to die so many times before you die..." The Land of Pain is one that all people must visit in one way or another throughout life. (The idea of syphilis being a metaphor for life is not lost on Flaubert, who wrote: "Syphilis: everyone, more or less, suffers from it.") For some, their visit to the Land of Pain lasts longer than others. Daudet does not exaggerate, glorify, or put on a brave face. He simply records his impressions as a way to articulate moments in which all communication is impossible. Every journal entry is remembering a past moment because it is impossible to write when suffering through intense moments of pain. His notes, then, become a diary of his survival, even as he is slowly dying.
While Daudet is a pitiable figure as a once-lauded writer who has been all but forgotten, the introduction makes an even sadder observation that Daudet also plays second fiddle in the list of great French syphilitics (Baudelaire, Flaubert, and Maupassant). The footnotes provide much information about his personal life--especially his treatment for syphilis, which sounds like the most painful, lingering death a person might suffer. In the words of Daudet: "You have to die so many times before you die..." The Land of Pain is one that all people must visit in one way or another throughout life. (The idea of syphilis being a metaphor for life is not lost on Flaubert, who wrote: "Syphilis: everyone, more or less, suffers from it.") For some, their visit to the Land of Pain lasts longer than others. Daudet does not exaggerate, glorify, or put on a brave face. He simply records his impressions as a way to articulate moments in which all communication is impossible. Every journal entry is remembering a past moment because it is impossible to write when suffering through intense moments of pain. His notes, then, become a diary of his survival, even as he is slowly dying.
oblomov's review against another edition
4.0
The problem with Julian Barnes' In the Land of Pain by Julian Barnes, translated by Julian Barnes and with footnotes by Julian Barnes, is that this is supposed to be Alphonse Daudet's autobiographical account of his time receiving treament for syphilis in sanatoriums.
And it still is that, it's a frank and intimate collection of Daudet's short and beautifully written notes on medicines, morbid humour, TMI details of fellow patients and agony. The book is barely a novella in length, and yet it should be about 60% shorter because Julian Barnes, played by Julian Barnes, will not stop talking. His footnotes regularly take up half a page or more, and it almost feels like I'm reading dual stories in some thoroughly unwanted reminder of [b: House of Leaves|24800|House of Leaves|Mark Z. Danielewski|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403889034l/24800._SX50_.jpg|856555].
Unlike House of Leaves, Barnes' second narrative is actually interesting and informative, and I enjoyed his mini essay about the long relationship between syphilis and writers, with some even claiming it was a badge of honour or maturity, which is bloody horrifying. My real issue with the book is the terrible layout, and if the footnotes had been endnotes or another essay on its own (thus not butchering the pages) I'd have instantly added another star.
A fascinating read on a gruesome subject and thoughtful annotations placed in a thoughtless way.
And it still is that, it's a frank and intimate collection of Daudet's short and beautifully written notes on medicines, morbid humour, TMI details of fellow patients and agony. The book is barely a novella in length, and yet it should be about 60% shorter because Julian Barnes, played by Julian Barnes, will not stop talking. His footnotes regularly take up half a page or more, and it almost feels like I'm reading dual stories in some thoroughly unwanted reminder of [b: House of Leaves|24800|House of Leaves|Mark Z. Danielewski|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1403889034l/24800._SX50_.jpg|856555].
Unlike House of Leaves, Barnes' second narrative is actually interesting and informative, and I enjoyed his mini essay about the long relationship between syphilis and writers, with some even claiming it was a badge of honour or maturity, which is bloody horrifying. My real issue with the book is the terrible layout, and if the footnotes had been endnotes or another essay on its own (thus not butchering the pages) I'd have instantly added another star.
A fascinating read on a gruesome subject and thoughtful annotations placed in a thoughtless way.
More...