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A review by dua_liepard
Nutshell by Ian McEwan
2.0
This is essentially a retelling of Hamlet from the perspective of a foetus. To that end, I found the gimmick of the narrator being an unborn baby utterly bizarre, especially given the academic tone of the narration. The methods McEwan used to get around the obvious pitfalls of this gimmick seemed a bit of a reach.
Having said this, the prose is, at times, astounding; the plot thoroughly gripping. There is however a tendency towards self-indulgent digressions, which again grate when considering the titular voice is supposed to be a baby. McEwan has instead inserted himself as the principal character, which is both conceited and tragic. Rather than exploring the idea of how an innocent baby may perceive the plotting of his treacherous mother and uncle from within the womb, McEwan instead elects to cast himself and level his incisive, sardonic wit at an array of contemporary (and entirely irrelevant) issues, such as his views on identity politics.
As a 200-page exercise in self-indulgence, this book left me cold. The frustration is that there is a lot to like here, but it is ruined by an author who's considerable success seems to have finally gone to his head.
Having said this, the prose is, at times, astounding; the plot thoroughly gripping. There is however a tendency towards self-indulgent digressions, which again grate when considering the titular voice is supposed to be a baby. McEwan has instead inserted himself as the principal character, which is both conceited and tragic. Rather than exploring the idea of how an innocent baby may perceive the plotting of his treacherous mother and uncle from within the womb, McEwan instead elects to cast himself and level his incisive, sardonic wit at an array of contemporary (and entirely irrelevant) issues, such as his views on identity politics.
As a 200-page exercise in self-indulgence, this book left me cold. The frustration is that there is a lot to like here, but it is ruined by an author who's considerable success seems to have finally gone to his head.