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A New York Times Notable Book of the Year Colette and Alison are unlikely cohorts: one a shy, drab beanpole of an assistant, the other a charismatic, corpulent psychic whose connection to the spiritual world torments her. When they meet at a fair, Alison invites Colette at once to join her on the road as her personal assistant and companion. Troubles spiral out of control when the pair moves to a suburban wasteland in what was once the English countryside. It is not long before the place beyond black threatens to uproot their lives forever. This is Hilary Mantel at her finest--insightful, darkly comic, unorthodox, and thrilling to read.
| Price | Condition | Delivery | Seller | Action |
| $99.99 | Digital |
| WonderClub |
Shawn Critchlow
reviewed Beyond Black on September 29, 2011
Beyond Black
Oh god. Where do I even begin? Lots of reviewers complained they didn't know where the book was going. Well, I didn't know either, but I thought it was a good thing. Don't you just love when you don't know where the book is going?
'Beyond Black' was going in all sorts of directions at once. It was a story about Alison, a medium, who can see and talk to ghosts and also happens to be very fat. It was a story about her obnoxious, nasty assistant cum manager (who weirdly reminded me of my very own assistant) and their very toxic friendship. It was a story of the world of professional psychics, broken childhood, and some real or metaphorical (depending on how cynical you are) ghosts haunting Alison. It was also a story about mental illness. There were so many different layers to this book, I am actually considering re-reading it (and I hardly ever do anything like that, because you know, so many books, so little time, etc.).
Be warned, this book is dark, drab, grim and depressing. People are dreary, English suburbs are bleak, even food is vapid. Redemption seems an abstract and improbable concept and we only have bits of black humour to cheer us up. Basically, it reads like a Polish book.
At the same time this book is beautiful. Mantel can write. Every paragraph is a little masterpiece.
The only thing that confused me were the abrupt changes of POV between Alison and her haughty assistant Colette.
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Add Beyond Black, A New York Times Notable Book of the Year Colette and Alison are unlikely cohorts: one a shy, drab beanpole of an assistant, the other a charismatic, corpulent psychic whose connection to the spiritual world torments her. When they mee, Beyond Black to your collection on WonderClub |
