'No one is strong enough or cunning enough to avert by word or deed the misfortune that is rooted in the iron laws of his character and his life.'

Welcome to Issue 7 of the 2PoundPaperback – your weekly dose of book-related insights, book news, and updates on my writing projects.

I've extended the 'reading' and 'writing' sections in this issue, in line with an experiment that I'm continuing into next week. Oh, and the above quote comes from one of my favourite novels, Embers.

What I'm Reading:

Embers by Sándor Márai.

I'm constantly surprised that Embers isn't more famous in the English speaking world, though I suppose it's better known in Hungary, where it bears the more apt title, A gyertyák csonkig égnek (candles burn until the end). I've read parts of this book over and over again, but after turning to it for some ideas about structure, I decided to re-read it in full.

The basic set up is as follows. The elderly General, who lives in a castle in a forest, has led a monk like existence since his middle years. The castle is described as mausoleum like, with most of it remaining unused for decades – 41 years, specifically. The General does not leave the castle. Guests to his nearby hunting lodge are greeted by his staff; letters addressed to him are answered by others in his name. But one letter he does open – it is written by Konrad, whom he has not seen in 41 years. Tonight, Konrad will have dinner at the castle.

For the first half of the novel, the narrative mediates between past and present. The timing is what is so perfect. The reader is, one the one hand, totally immersed in the glory of an old Vienna – but, on the other, never allowed to forget the bearing of the present. In the second half of the novel, we get a monologue of Shakespearean proportion.

Perhaps the most interesting feature of Embers, consists in the gap between what the characters say and what they do. The General spends pages and pages telling us he wants the truth from Konrad – that he has waited 41 years to hear it; that this waiting alone has kept him alive – and yet, at no point, right until the end, does he stop talking and give Konrad a chance to respond.

Anyway, go read it. It's fantastic.