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3.54 AVERAGE
3.54 AVERAGE
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
A wonderfully acerbic account of a group of elderly people who receive repeated phone calls from a stranger stating: “remember you must die”. The book is less about uncovering who this mysterious caller is and more about the diverse ways in which each person reacts to these calls and to their own mortality. Spark’s writing is sharp and witty in exposing the foibles, nastiness and self-absorbed nature of many of the characters. Although they are mostly unpleasant and unkind people, the book nevertheless retains a lightness as Spark sketches out with humour how vivacious these elders remain in their efforts to live and to ‘hold one over the other’ right up until the end of their lives. A hugely entertaining and masterfully crafted book.
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I'm sort of on the fence about this one. The writing is superbly funny, but the characters are two dimensional -- in a witty BBC sitcom sort of way, but still...
How can a book titled "Memento Mori" be so dang amusing? I thought it would be a book about a bunch of elderly busybodies, and I was right but it was even better than I hoped!
Absolutely fantastic novel. Wry, macabre, tightly plotted, and skirting between empathy and cruelty. Certainly the best (only?) and most evocative exploration of old age that I've read.
Incredibly witty and a fascinating look at a weird, complex, older group of friends and acquaintances as they approach death. I was quite often shocked by the course of events and the writing style used to deliver them. Feel like I need to think about this one for a while.
My previous experience with Muriel Spark had been delightful and a friend, knowing how excited I had been with that reading, lent me Memento Mori for the summer. This is a very curious book. I must say I was rather intrigued with it as I read the back cover. And, contrary to what had happened with the other book I read by her, I expected the author would surprise me with all her might. Having read more than one book by her by now, I can certainly point out some characteristics that are exclusive to her writing. That is, Muriel's writing is extremely intelligent and humorous with the occasional dark and disconcerting comment that leaves one somewhat bewildered.
On the other hand, this book is curious because it talks about old age and everything that comes with it: disease, nostalgia, resentment for things not completed/not lived, what is left behind. I would say it is not easy to write about old age having not experienced that stage of life yet but somehow, Muriel Spark did it and with such confidence and clarity that it would seem that she knew already what would be like despite not having been 'one of their own' as Alec says, when she wrote this novel.
That is one of the things that I most admire in writers: that they are able to write convincingly and surely about something they have never experienced themselves, only knowing other peoples' feelings and thoughts of it.
On the other hand, this book is curious because it talks about old age and everything that comes with it: disease, nostalgia, resentment for things not completed/not lived, what is left behind. I would say it is not easy to write about old age having not experienced that stage of life yet but somehow, Muriel Spark did it and with such confidence and clarity that it would seem that she knew already what would be like despite not having been 'one of their own' as Alec says, when she wrote this novel.
That is one of the things that I most admire in writers: that they are able to write convincingly and surely about something they have never experienced themselves, only knowing other peoples' feelings and thoughts of it.