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wathohuc 's review for:
A Handful of Dust
by Evelyn Waugh
Unlike the other Waugh book I read ("The Loved One"), this book wasn't at all very funny. The satire (and he clearly is mocking British gentry) evokes a depressing and debauched reality. I tell you, I just found the whole thing, as well-written as it is, to be a downer. Waugh is vicious in his contempt for the British gentry, and makes them out to be pathetic beings not even worthy of any kind of empathy as fellow human beings. I found Brenda to be absolutely despicable. That she could treat Tony the way she did by cuckolding him, and then to try to impoverish him by essentially extorting his wealth -- all the while proclaiming a fondness for him -- was just gross. There's a sliver of empathy for Tony, but then his whole Brazilian escapade comes across as a pretty pathetic and ill-advised escape adventure that results in his essential captivity in the Amazon by a kooky character who demands that Tony perpetually read Dickens to him aloud. Not sure if this is a slight against Dickens, too; but Tony's fate is quite depressing. Anyway, I can't really say that I "enjoyed" this book, though I will admit to Waugh's talent as a writer. [Picked by Anna.]