Skip to main content

Berg by Ann Quinn: book review





Berg (1964, edition 2001) is set in the seaside town of Brighton, England, in the 1960s.

Hair restorer Alistair Berg decides to kill the man who left him and his mother to move in with another woman. The man, of course, is his father. 

He calls himself Alistair Greb when he comes to Brighton to find his father, so as not to reveal his true identity. ‘Why should it come to this, an isolated day when thought is nearly as heavy as feeling...?’

This is a novel about Alistair’s plot to kill his father. Alistair is 33 years old, and his father is about sixty. The problem is that he and his father share the same love—the same woman—Judith. Alistair must kill his rival. 

Mentally, Alistair is in his head, torn between rationality and an insane hatred and jealousy. His internal monologue and his mother’s letters drive him crazy. Is he really crazy? His father screwed up his childhood, and now … well, now, this just has to stop. Permanently. 

The first sentence of this short novel is brilliant. What follows is good, but not of the intrigue and intensity of the first line. This novel is dark, broody, mordant, and atmospheric, where the internal world blends seamlessly with the external world. It is also experimental and at times, impenetrable. And miserable—the miserable life of missed opportunities and pitiable people. But the ending is great.  







As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases.



MARTINA NICOLLS is an international aid and development consultant, and the author  of: The Paris Residences of James Joyce  (2020), Similar But Different in the Animal Kingdom (2017), The Shortness of Life: A Mongolian Lament (2015), Liberia’s Deadest Ends (2012), Bardot’s Comet (2011), Kashmir on a Knife-Edge (2010) and The Sudan Curse (2009).

Labels:

Comments

  1. Carpet Bright UKDecember 14, 2021 at 5:41 PM

    Nice Post, Thanks For sharing. When you want the best place for Cleaning services at an affordable price, we are the right choice for you. Carpet Cleaner in Brighton

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Pir-E-Kamil - The Perfect Mentor by Umera Ahmed: book review

The Perfect Mentor pbuh  (2011) is set in Lahore and Islamabad in Pakistan. The novel commences with Imama Mubeen in medical university. She wants to be an eye specialist. Her parents have arranged for her to marry her first cousin Asjad. Salar Sikander, her neighbour, is 18 years old with an IQ of 150+ and a photographic memory. He has long hair tied in a ponytail. He imbibes alcohol, treats women disrespectfully and is generally a “weird chap” and a rude, belligerent teenager. In the past three years he has tried to commit suicide three times. He tries again. Imama and her brother, Waseem, answer the servant’s call to help Salar. They stop the bleeding from his wrist and save his life. Imama and Asjad have been engaged for three years, because she wants to finish her studies first. Imama is really delaying her marriage to Asjad because she loves Jalal Ansar. She proposes to him and he says yes. But he knows his parents won’t agree, nor will Imama’s parents. ...
1 comment
Read more

Flaws in the Glass, a self-portrait by Patrick White: book review

The manuscript, Flaws in the Glass (1981), is Patrick Victor Martindale White’s autobiography. White, born in 1912 in England, migrated to Sydney, Australia, when he was six months old. For three years, at the age of 20, he studied French and German literature at King’s College at the University of Cambridge in England. Throughout his life, he published 12 novels. In 1957 he won the inaugural Miles Franklin Literary Award for Voss, published in 1956. In 1961, Riders in the Chariot became a best-seller, winning the Miles Franklin Literary Award. In 1973, he was the first Australian author to be awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature for The Eye of the Storm, despite many critics describing his works as ‘un-Australian’ and himself as ‘Australia’s most unreadable novelist.’ In 1979, The Twyborn Affair was short-listed for the Booker Prize, but he withdrew it from the competition to give younger writers the opportunity to win the award. His autobiography, Flaws in the Glass...
Post a Comment
Read more

Sister cities discussed: Canberra and Islamabad

Two months ago, in March 2015, Australia and Pakistan agreed to explore ways to deepen ties. The relationship between Australia and Pakistan has been strong for decades, and the two countries continue to keep dialogues open. The annual bilateral discussions were held in Australia in March to continue engagements on a wide range of matters of mutual interest. The Pakistan delegation discussed points of interest will include sports, agriculture, economic growth, trade, border protection, business, and education. The possible twinning of the cities of Canberra, the capital of Australia, and Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, were also on the agenda (i.e. called twin towns or sister cities). Sister City relationships are twinning arrangements that build friendships as well as government, business, culture, and community linkages. Canberra currently has international Sister City relationships with Beijing in China and Nara in Japan. One example of existing...
1 comment
Read more