A review by mokelly
Memento Mori by Muriel Spark

5.0

I read this book for a class that I'm taking about the Twentieth century. I was not expecting much, as most of the time, I dislike books that are read in school settings. This was also written in the '50s, so I excepted a very dry and difficult-to-read book. But, that is not what I got. I absolutely loved this book. From the first page, I was encapsulated by this book. The premise is that a group of elderly friends and family are getting phone calls from an anonymous man saying "Remember you must die." This immediately interested me. Each character has an extremely distinct personality that makes you either love them or hate them. I was really drawn to the characters of Charmian, Jean Taylor, and Alec Warner. There aren't many books written about old people, and Sparks writes them very well. This book is very funny, even when it is talking about dark subjects like death. I found myself chuckling out loud, which isn't something I often do. The serious moments are also very well done. After some scenes, I had to put down the book and really think about what just happened and how it relates to my life. The themes of mortality are very prominent in this book. But, it is never overly-morbid. It leaves you thinking about death (in old age) in an almost positive way. The hints of postmodernism were also very interesting to me. This book left me thinking about life in a different way than I had before. I think this will stick with me forever. I highly recommend this book.