Cornflower Book Group - Troubles

 

     J.G. Farrell's Troubles is quite the book! Drama, black comedy, pathos, farce - all are played out in the labyrinthine corridors and endless rooms of the Majestic Hotel in rural Ireland around 1920, as political unrest and violence increase and threaten the residents of this eccentric establishment.

    The book's characters are dwarfed by the vast edifice within which they live, though they and it combined make for a sort of grandly gothic Fawlty Towers with a touch of Gormenghast thrown in. For me, the hotel was the star  - never mind the ineffectual and increasingly distracted owner Edward Spencer, nor the Major who somehow cannot bring himself to leave the place - no, it's the cats in the Imperial Bar, the impenetrable foliage and "ambitious plants" of the Palm Court, the "Do More" generator which could hardly do less, the proliferation of old ladies and even older, more crumbly retainers, the piglets in the squash court, the dogs with their daube de mouton, the insidious decay and deterioration, the immensity of the place, all that is what is done so well and it's that which makes the book so memorable.

    I was interested in how J.G. Farrell constructs the story and therefore how it reads, e.g. the lack of chapters (there is just the occasional brief newspaper report to break up the narrative) means it's all of a piece and there are times when it feels not like hard going exactly, but more a lengthy trudge through a featureless bog! Progress - the story's and the reader's - seems slow. But then there are subtle shifts of pace and purpose and things begin to hot up in more ways than one until you reach the climax which, I think, is superb.

    How about you? Did you make it to the blistering finish, or did you pack your bags and take your leave of the Majestic somewhere along the way?

(Later: The Troubles cake is here).

Comments

[Harriet]

I read this a couple of months ago and absolutely loved it. I never found it slow going, and thought the mixture of black comedy, serious thoughts on colonialism and historical accuracy worked really well. The characters were wonderful and as for the hotel -- as you say, it was the star of the show. The novel made me laugh a lot, always a good thing. If you want to see what I said about it on my blog you can read that here: http://harrietdevine.typepad.com/harriet_devines_blog/2010/06/troubles.html
By the way I have since read Farrell's The Siege of Krishnapoor, which I thought was even better.

[Susie Vereker]

I read this earlier this year. Here’s some of what I said on my blog.
Not as much as I expected about the Troubles, it’s more about the blinkered, narrow world of the Anglo Irish dying of muddled ennui in this dying hotel, (though the author does anchors us with clippings of what’s happening in the rest of the world). I loved so many of the brilliantly written funny descriptions it’s hard to single them out but Farrell is strong on cats and pigs as well as humans. If I have a criticism it is that the Major is an awfully limp sort of main protagonist and you long for him to do something, anything. But maybe he, the hotel and its crazy owner, are deliberately used as symbols of isolated decline. I can't say how accurate it is historically and I hope readers don't assume all the Anglo Irish of the day were like JG Farrell's Edward Spencer. To me, the tragic-comic world depicted isn’t as immediate as, say, that of William Trevor’s or Molly Keane’s (MJ Farrell – no relation) but then she was writing about people she knew well. And William Trevor is always convincing, if sad. By the way, I don't remember their characters being so distant from or anti the locals – whereas many of JG Farrell’s are vile, upper class John-Bull caricatures, like the frightful planters he depicted in The Singapore Grip. But at least the Major is sympathetic to the plight of the Irish.
I thought The Siege of Krishapur was JGF’s best book (despite the silly memsahibs). Sad he died so young in that strange accident falling into the sea.
(By the way I can't read all of Harriet's comment. Right side hidden.)

[ctussaud]

It is reminiscent of Rebecca and A Little Stranger in the way the house is a major character in its own right; threatening its occupants with falling masonry and letters from its nameboard, exerting extreme privations of discomfort and cold, and being physically on the move, with roots appearing through the floor. It was obvious from an early stage that the hotel would destroy itself by the end of the book in a sort of cleansing combustion.
I liked the regular placing of news clippings and articles from around the world in a form of punctuation through the narrative. It was rather puzzling that the Major stayed there after the death of his "fiancee": almost anywhere would have been more comfortable and amenable than the Majestic!

[Dark Puss]

I'm so ashamed of myself, for the first time ever I have failed to finish a CBG book. From choice I must add. Yes I have excuses, a 6 day visit to Geneva being one of them, but the reality is I just got tired of this book and in the end I stopped after completing Part 1. I did like the Gormenghastian Hotel, though it's not up to the truly amazing "real thing", and I agree about it being the star of this book. I found, unlike other readers, very little that was comedic (black or otherwise) and in the end my boots were too waterlogged to wish to continue the journey. I'm glad that those of you who did make it to the end found the views worthwhile.

So why did I give up? I'm not sure apart from the lack of pace which was not compensated by the excellent descriptions of place and time. I think I simply to get bored, this is a book that I would have liked so much more if it were about half it's actual length. The story simply didn't sustain itself well enough, at least in Part 1, but perhaps I missed the real highlights in Part 2?

I'll try not to let myself give up on any other CBG books, however hard I find reading them.

[Anne]

I'm afraid I packed my bags!I just felt nothing was making me want to keep on reading the book and I was on a very exhausting holiday.(excuse!)I'm glad others got enjoyment from the book and was interested in their comments.

[Mr Cornflower]

I found myself very split on this one. On the one hand I can absolutely see why some readers gave up; the early stages are undeniably a little on the turgid side, but even here I suspect that this is deliberate: Farrell exemplifying the dreary langour of a wet afternoon in provincial Ireland. But then he throws a whole lot of themes into the pot and starts stirring briskly. Sex, violence, civil war and family strife, class hatred and religious bigotry, the obvious but still enjoyable 'decrepit hotel/crumbling empire' metaphor, the clash of national stereotypes (the reserved, 'ramrod stiff' Major; the sly, feckless, obsequious, pompous, murderous locals). I finished the book at a gallop and will certainly read more Farrell.

[Barbara]

I'm only half way through but will justify commenting on the grounds that I read all J G Farrell's novels years ago. I agree that the building (so obviously a metaphor) is the star of the book. My memory was of this crumbling, sodden building being taken over by plants. It was a very strong image and proved accurate on re-reading. That must be a tribute to the writing. The characters though had completely disappeared from my mind.
I agree with Susie about the Major, who remains a shadowy figure. I find it hard to justify his inability to get away from the wretched place, which seems to have become a Sleeping Beauty palace with most of the residents asleep and/or blind to the outside world. The book seems a mirror image of the idea that the Empire was acquired 'in a fit of absence of mind' as it appears here to be lost by inertia.

[Sandy]

It was a bit of a lengthy trudge through a featureless bog but I enjoyed it, maybe because I have lots of practice with featureless bogs where I live.

The plot involving the Major's hopeless love for Sarah ("perched inside him, motionless like a sick bird") was the highlight for me. It's paralysing effect on the Major echoed the other attitudes that had failed to accept reality & move on. For example the understanding of Irish sentiment and even the state of the faded hotel.

So thanks for this read Cornflower - I had no difficulty finishing it.

[Harriet]

It's done it again! This has never happened before. Please remove the duplicate. How annoying.

[Cornflower]

I've removed the duplicate, Harriet, but both were fully visible to me - how odd!

[Julie Fredericksen]

Karen -

Harriet's post is not fully visible to me. The letters are cut off on the right side.

[Julie Fredericksen]

Barbara, inertia is the perfect word to use. I had planned to use it myself to describe the Major. And yes, Susie, he is an awfully limp sort of main protagonist. Perhaps I kept reading to see if he would finally do something.

I did not think reading this book was like slogging through a bog, although I sensed that the black comedy disappeared about halfway through.

For those who didn't finish, it does pick up toward the end and the Major manages to rouse himself to get the affairs of the hotel and its few remaining "guests" squared away before the bitter end.

I found a couple of points to be quite unbelievable. First, the fact that the Major does not even inquire about the health of his "finacee" and then that Edward is not prosecuted for killing a man.

I didn't develop much feeling for any of the characters, and especially not the fiancee. I guess the thought of impending death can create a lot of reactions in people, even ennui. My deepest feelings were for the poor piglets.

[Susie Vereker]

At least one can still click on the link to see what Harriet said about the book on her blog.

[Barbara MacLeod]

Being in a book group is about having a go and I can honestly say I gave this book my best shot. I read it, at least I read it to the mid-point's natural break and then simply put it down. Oh dear. I can't say I didn't enjoy it; it was 'so-far, so-good' but I simply found that yet another list of atrocities - I think it was Amritsar and the Night of Terror in Derry - just made me grind to a halt!

Actually I thought the idea of weaving the story of domestic comings and goings with the historic event (Ireland 1919) was rather good. However, a book about people ineffectually getting on with their lives (or not), I'm afraid, never really quickens my pulse; I see too much of it in real life (especially in the hotel business)! So I guess the combination of the two - combined with the fact that I wasn't really in the mood for this type of subject matter - made me give consign it my very small pile of "Did Not Finish".

[Susan in TX]

Well, I'm about 2/3 of the way through so hope to finish it tonight. I've had the hardest time liking the character of the Major. Early on I just wanted him to get a spine and leave the hotel for crying out loud. I couldn't fathom a total stranger just hanging around wandering around this deteriorating building. I've kept on with the book because I've read such wonderful things about it, but it has been hard not to put it down for something else. I must say the scene where the cat attacked the hat during the whist tournament did have me laughing out loud. :)

[Harriet]

very odd. but thanks anyway.

[Cornflower]

Just to pick up a few points from the comments, I did find it very funny in places, particularly as the pace picked up (but it is black comedy and often bizarre, so won't appeal to all). Why does the major go back to the hotel after Angela's death, and why can he not bring himself to leave over the ensuing months? On a practical level, does he pay to stay there - does anyone pay?! I wanted them all to get a grip and sort things out.
I predicted in my post that some readers would have given up on the book and I was right, but I'd say the second half repays perseverance, and I'm very glad I stuck with it to the end.
(I'm still seeing Harriet's comment perfectly clearly so I'm at a loss to know what to do to shift it so that it's visible to all, but as Susie says, click on the link to Harriet's blog for more.

[Carol]

I stuck with the book, and am glad I did as I too was ready to give up half way through.
Overall I enjoyed it, it was funny at times - the descriptions of the falling apart hotel, the almost permanent resident lady guests etc. certianly made me laugh out loud on more than one occasion. As the book progressed, it certainly became darker and more serious ... and the last 10% (I read on a Kindle, so have no idea of pages #'s) were gripping and unexpected to me.
I too wonder why the Major stayed so long, and I too wondered whether he actually paid to stay. All immaterial really as there would have been no story without him, but still.
The book did make me realize that my education is seriously lacking in regard to in depth Irish history and the 'troubles', so if nothing else this book has spurred me into further research and learning on the subject.

[Dark Puss]

It may be because it is a directly typed url longer than the window width. Lets see: http://www.cornflowerbooks.co.uk/2010/09/cornflower-book-group-troubles.html#tpe-action-resize-285

is quite long. Now lets have a look. YES!

So solution is "easy":

[a href="http://your-url-here"]text
to highlight here[/a]
where I have to use [] instead
of angle brackets as they get
interpreted, would fix it.

Peter

[Dark Puss]

Harriet, see further down in comments, I think I have the solution.

Peter

[ctussaud]

I loved this vignette on pp216-7 of my (Phoenix) paperback. Describing a stuffed and mounted pike in the gun room
"In the hotel's heyday this pike had succumbed to a gentleman with a title, name and date illegibly inscribed with spidery flourishes on a brass plate, and now it rested on the mantelpiece, its small, vicious mouth frozen open in impotent rage and despair.......The Major sighed enviously, thinking how much he would like to motor up to Dublin in Sarah's company....He sighed again, disgruntled. The pike's small bad-tempered mouth and wicked teeth expressed his mood to perfection."

[m]

Only just finished this, ages after the rest of you. I thought it was howlingly funny - but at the same time, it was only a kind of inertia that carried me through to the end. I did think that was terribly clever of Farrell; the reader is somehow infected with the Major's malaise.
Loved the hotel which is a character in its own right.
Completely understand Cornflower's puzzlement about hotel bills and where the money comes from. (How did they ever manage to spruce everything up for the ball!) But ... mild spoiler if anybody's still determined to get to the end ... who made Viola pregnant? I must have blinked and missed that! Surely not Padraig ... I wouldn't have thought he had it in him!

[Matt]

Well, four years later, I'm still waiting--who impregnated Viola? Or is it a virgin birth?