Quietly Upset

So, I know that The Quiet American is supposed to be Greene's masterpiece or whatever, but I must say it was probably my least favorite of his that I have read. Well, maybe second least favorite, but still, not exactly a fan. I know that movies have been coming up lately, but maybe I need to see the movie on this one. I think it actually is available on Instant Watch. I think that this one more than the others by Greene that I have read really made the women non characters, even though in a way the story more than the others revolved around a woman.

It's strange. I would say that in the previous Greene novels that I've read, women are never the focus exactly, but they always felt real in some way. Sort of like, yes they aren't the main character of this book (often more a catalyst), but they are the main character of their own story. In this one, she didn't feel like she could be the main character of her own story. Almost as though she wasn't a person in the way the male characters were. I was definitely intrigued by the ending of this one. Not what I had expected, I must say.

I guess the common theme of this post is, I liked other books more. The Unconsoled is definitely my least favorite Ishiguro that I have read. Now, I loved Never Let Me Go, and Remains of the Day is exquisite, so that's important context. The Unconsoled is still masterful and beautiful in many ways. Unfortunately, it is also a bit maddening.

The basic plot of the story is that this man shows up in the small town to give a concert, and he has no memory of agreeing to do the concert. It has an almost Alice-in-Wonderland quality to it, since reality and relationships are always shifting in a dreamlike way. The story also explores rules and the folly of adhering to them in strict, nonsensical ways (foolish consistency and all of that), which is a fascinating device when you consider that the novel changes its own rules along the way in some ways. So, from a craft perspective it's amazing, but I always get so annoyed with characters who seem to be causing their own problems (it's why Kafka makes me crazy).