Biograph Book

The ostensible story of the novel is about a late 20th century scientist - Victor Werner, who has caused huge controversy and excitement by making an eubiont (a small non-organic self-replicating creature) and thereby effectively reproducing creation.

Werner's own daughter died in the womb in late pregnancy and his partner left him after the event mainly due to Werner being unable to face being with her when she gave birth to the stillborn girl. He is haunted by that event -by the loss of his daughter, the loss of his partner and by his mistake in deserting her.

Much of the book is a series of letters he sends to his partner but addresses to his dead daughter, describing his work and current life.

The first part of the book is a series of (often failed) creation stories - including the legend of Lilith (Adam's first wife), musings on literature and the creation of characters as well as the difference between great storytellers and great writers (one survives translation the other doesn't), a discussion of language (with the Talmud and the Genetic code implicitly contrasted and compared) with the largest part being a tale set in Prague of a Jewish rabbi who to appease the Emperor follows the Talmudic instructions on how to create a Golem (which promptly kills his fellow rabbi). We also learn of Werner's own conception including tabular discussions of fertility temperatures and contraction intervals.

In the last two parts of the novel various other themes and concepts are discussed: including Frankenstein, Watson/Crick's discovery of DNA and the German scientist who formulated Urea and who (in his own words) was in the sad position of "destroying a beautiful theory with an ugly truth" by creating organic material from inorganic chemicals, something that Werner feels is analogous to his challenge of the creation/God myth through his eubiont.

The last part of the story is a rather strange thriller type ending.

A novel short on action (other than the strange ending) and text but long on ideas.

In some ways the sheer mix of ideas and concepts rather overwhelms the limited narrative in which it is placed.

Nevertheless very thought provoking and stimulating.