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A review by tjwallace04
Memento Mori by Muriel Spark
dark
funny
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
I read "The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie" many years ago and remember liking it but not much else about it. I thought it was time to revisit the work of Muriel Spark.
"Memento Mori" is a quick and amusing (wry, dry British humor) story about a circle of elderly (70+) friends and acquaintances who have very bustling, dramatic, interconnected lives. I mean, considering this book was written in 1959, I was kind of shocked by all the shenanigans the group got up to. They have had affairs and quarrels and various intimacies; they're keeping secrets, and they're gossiping. They are closely watching each other for signs of failing health and judging each other's "fitness" against their own. There is even blackmail! And then they all begin to receive mysterious anonymous calls from a person telling them "Remember, you must die." How each character responds to the call (fear, anger, resignation) is lightly explored while their capers slowly taper off. In the end, you will probably not be shocked to hear, they all eventually succomb to that inevitable state of being predicted by the anonymous caller.
I mostly enjoyed this book. It is very different from anything I have read lately. There is not much of a plot. it is more like a series of linked vignettes looking at old age. And only a small handful of the characters in "Memento Mori" are at all likable - Charmian, Miss Taylor, Inspector Mortimer, maybe Alec Warner. I usually struggle with books where I can't relate to or emotionally glom onto the main characters, as was the case here. Honestly, "Memento Mori" is a pretty bleak portrait of the human soul. But it was definitely funny and even thought-provoking. I just hope I behave with more empathy, kindness, and propriety when I become Granny T.J.
"Memento Mori" is a quick and amusing (wry, dry British humor) story about a circle of elderly (70+) friends and acquaintances who have very bustling, dramatic, interconnected lives. I mean, considering this book was written in 1959, I was kind of shocked by all the shenanigans the group got up to. They have had affairs and quarrels and various intimacies; they're keeping secrets, and they're gossiping. They are closely watching each other for signs of failing health and judging each other's "fitness" against their own. There is even blackmail! And then they all begin to receive mysterious anonymous calls from a person telling them "Remember, you must die." How each character responds to the call (fear, anger, resignation) is lightly explored while their capers slowly taper off. In the end, you will probably not be shocked to hear, they all eventually succomb to that inevitable state of being predicted by the anonymous caller.
I mostly enjoyed this book. It is very different from anything I have read lately. There is not much of a plot. it is more like a series of linked vignettes looking at old age. And only a small handful of the characters in "Memento Mori" are at all likable - Charmian, Miss Taylor, Inspector Mortimer, maybe Alec Warner. I usually struggle with books where I can't relate to or emotionally glom onto the main characters, as was the case here. Honestly, "Memento Mori" is a pretty bleak portrait of the human soul. But it was definitely funny and even thought-provoking. I just hope I behave with more empathy, kindness, and propriety when I become Granny T.J.