Completed March 2022
BEAUTIFUL WORLD,
WHERE ARE YOU
This was a book split into two. Two couples, two locations, two forms of writing (third person narrative, first person letters); with that came two very distinct tones. Half of the novel focused on stark simplicity – following the characters in their everyday, mostly unexceptional lives, which were largely as vapid as they were relatable. The other half is dense with philosophy – long, winding conversations, huge ideas, lofty discussions about concepts far beyond ordinary reach. It was the epitome of mundanity versus grandiosity.
One moment that stood out for me was Felix reaching for his phone in his pocket and unlocking it to see no new notifications. He puts it back in his pocket. As bizarre as it might seem to pick out this moment, it exemplifies one of the reasons I enjoyed Beautiful World, Where Are You. This is something we've all done. Most of us probably do it several times a day. And it's this delicate, precise attention to the most inconsequential of details that made the characters so sharply empathetic. I felt like I was there and then.
And then, all of a sudden, a deep dive into effusive and longwinded academic discourse: the kind you have to read slowly, and reflect on every couple of sentences. This never felt too heavy going, nor intimidating even when it was presented as a dense block plenty of pages long (and even though the amount of characters per word practically doubles).
These sections did make it hard to stay grounded, especially as they emphasised the characters' relative privilege. Of course they wouldn't be debating these issues if their lives were in any way more difficult, a fact which felt prominent compared to some very challenging storylines I've navigated recently. There were some moments I struggled to relate to Alice in particular due to the enormous fortune she had bestowed upon her, but at the same time this was quite interesting. At least the book felt self aware of this fact with its playfully mocking tone.
Eileen was an intriguing perspective, too. I found her inner turmoil engaging, especially as she made decision after decision which were quite obviously bad for her. She provided great contrast to Alice as well, in particular given her work (gratifyingly underpaid and under appreciated) and her flat share (too small and too expensive). Her closed-off nature was unusual for a female protagonist, as was her complex self doubt. As she pushed away the other cast members – Simon, in particular – I felt like she was holding the reader at arms length, also. Which isn't to say I didn't relate to her, it simply fuelled my desire to understand her further.
Also worth mentioning are the brief departures into background. Natural imagery and surrounding scenes are detailed with such a delicate hand, acting as sharp relief from the pathos. These were typically short and infrequent, but perfectly timed as a breath of fresh air, which I appreciated. They grounded the narrative when it had been swirling into ever more tangled emotion.
I feel like my thoughts on this one are complex, which isn't surprising as it is an unarguably complex book. So at the risk of spiralling I'll leave it here, and say that it felt just as messy and realistic as modern day life so often does.
“And isn’t death just apocalypse in the first person?”