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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excellent writing, plus a real plot!,
By
This review is from: Banishing Verona: A Novel (Paperback)
I was immediately drawn in by the characters, Zeke and Verona. I so much wanted their relationship to work out, that when at one point I wasn't sure it would, my "heart fell."They were totally alive to me, as were the supporting cast of parents, brothers and friends. The descriptions of the way Zeke responded to life were clear and fascinating. I was particularly charmed by his encounter with the nurse, Jill, and their few days together in Boston. There were a few tiny points that might have been hard to believe, such as Jill's beginning her work as a nurse the day after she arrived in Boston from London, but I accepted it all because it was so obvious that Livesey cared about her characters. I recommend this highly to anyone who has suffered through books whose characters' actions make no sense and through books that are written only to confuse the reader. In this case, I knew exactly how I was supposed to feel when it ended.
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
"A person could not be measured in normal solar time",
By M. J Leonard "MikeonAlpha" (Silver Lake, Los Angeles, CA United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)
This review is from: Banishing Verona: A Novel (Paperback)
Zeke Cafarelli is twenty-nine, rather shy, angelically handsome, an antique clock collector, and a house painter. He's been to college, but he suffers from a mild case of Asperger's Syndrome, so life is often cluttered and disorderly. Zeke's parents love him dearly, but Don, his father has recently had a heart attack and his mother, Gwen is threatening to run away with Maurice, her new lover. They both want Zeke to give up his painting job, and help run their grocery shop.One morning, while painting the house of Gerald and Ariel Barrow, Zeke answers the door, and meets Verona Macintyre, a single, seven months pregnant, thirty seven-year-old London radio talk-show host. With suitcase in hand, she claims to be the niece of the absent owners, and after cooking dinner; she and Zeke spend the night together. The next morning Verona mysteriously vanishes, puzzlingly leaving her coveralls nailed to the floor. But it's all too late because Zeke is absolutely besotted, and instantly becomes obsessed with finding her. Life for Zeke is complicated: his Mother and Father are constantly hounding him, and his disability makes it hard to respond appropriately in social situations. It's as though two large figures are standing on either side of Zeke tugging - "to his left his non-niece whom he wants desperately to find," and to the right, his father, "who has left four messages and who now prefers a parrot to his son." Verona, failed to tell Zeke that Nigel and George, two thugs are harassing her; they're after her unscrupulous and capricious brother Henry. Henry, with his history of sociopathic lies and deceit, has recently got himself involved in a shady real estate deal and the creditors are demanding repayment. Verona flees to America to try to find him - " the boy born without a conscience," while Zeke continues to pine away in London. The remainder of the book alternates voices, as Zeke tries to reunite with Verona, and she, equally smitten, but on the run from her incompetent brother's pecuniary malfeasance, leads him on a far-from-merry chase to Boston and back to London. Zeke readily admits that he doesn't want to rewrite the past, he wants to rewrite the present; it's as if he were viewing, even the people he new best, "through a pane of glass." And part of the joy of this story is not just Zeke's transatlantic journey, but also his journey towards the world of self-confidence and self-assurance. Packed with nuances of everyday life, Livesey has created some totally amazing characters, who are constantly finding themselves in some unusual situations. Her observations on "the unknowable nature of people" are unsurpassed. For Zeke, life's observations are precious: "most things when you get close gradually reveal themselves - like clocks, doorbells, and trains - but humans only grow more puzzling with proximity." Banishing Verona is part eccentric comedy of manners, and also part statement on the difficulties of keeping and maintaining loving relationships. The novel is also offering the reader some astute observations on the mysteries of human nature. Livesey is saying that trust; having trust in oneself, and developing trust in others, is of the utmost importance, because without trust, one cannot participate most fully in life. This is a wonderful tale, with a narrative that offers a rich and rewarding journey into two very idiosyncratic internal lives, a pair of incompatible lovers, who might, with any luck, find the strength to open up to each other, and move forward as one. Mike Leonard March 05.
6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another beautiful novel by Margot Livesey!,
This review is from: Banishing Verona: A Novel (Paperback)
Ever since I read The Missing World, Margot Livesey has been one of my all-time favorite authors. Her novels are often dark and thought-provoking, but with a prose so beautiful that you cannot put her books down. I couldn't wait to read another one of her novels. I am so glad I read Banishing Verona. Zeke is a twenty-nine-year-old house painter and handyman in London. He is described as having the face of a Raphael angel. But Zeke is not good at dealing with people. He possesses communication problems that are not unlike that of an autistic person. However, the appearance of a strange woman changes things in his life in dramatic ways. No sooner does Verona appear at the house that he is working on than she vanishes. Zeke soon finds himself in a cat and mouse chase, trying to track down Verona, while at the same time dealing with unfinished business regarding his family. There are various twists throughout the novel.Once again, Margot Livesey delivers a dark, beautiful novel that enthralls from beginning to end. This novel, while a little complex to describe in a short plot summary, is a literary marvel. It is in some ways better than Eva Moves the Furniture, my favorite Livesey novel. Zeke is a wonderful and abstruse character, and Verona is as elusive as a character could get. The development of the story is a little disjointed in the beginning, but falls into place quickly enough. There are a few disarming surprises in this novel that are not unlike the ones in Criminals and The Missing World, but without the shock factor of the aforementioned novels. The one thing I did not like in the story was how one of the characters settled in and was employed soon after arriving to Boston from London. That bit of the book is quite unrealistic. Other than that, Banishing Verona is a must-read in more ways than one. I urge readers to try Margot Livesey if they haven't done. She is without a doubt one of the best British writers of today.
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