Customer Reviews

Samedi the Deafness (Vintage Contemporaries)

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After reading a review of Jesse Ball's premiere work "Samedi the Deafness," one quickly concludes that they are encountering a unique new talent with the potential to produce even more surprising works of prose in the future.

That expectation does not mean that the present work is not strikingly original in its own right - only that one gets the sense that there is more where that came from...a very encouraging prospect.

"Samedi the Deafness" is a difficult work to categorize, containing a myriad of poetic phrases sprinkled throughout the choppy, occasionally disjointed sentences and paragraphs. Some pages contain only one line, while others are formatted to reveal the dialogue among characters. It is an interesting construct that stops being a distraction after the first chapter and gives the novel a sort of lyrical cadence all its own.

The plot can be a bit difficult to track sometimes, existing as a silver thread woven throughout the dreamlike descriptions of the locations and characters surrounding the narrator. Any detailed summary would reveal too much; suffice to say, the narrator happens upon a dying man in a park who informs him with his dying breaths that the world is in danger from the foreboding character of Samedi and that he must be stopped.

As a result of this chance encounter, the narrator enters a swirling vortex of pathological liars and hidden motives, housed within the labarynthine halls of a mental institution. It is an odd trip to be sure, but the pay off is a good one.

When Samedi's ultimate plan is revealed, it's haunting ramifications echo the postmodern masterwork, "Blindness," by Jose Saramago. This is fine company indeed.

"Samedi the Deafness" is an original and thought-provoking read best suited for those who don't mind being challenged by their fiction. It is a work well worth trying for yourself.

- S.

On a Sunday morning in a Washington park, James Sim - loner and professional mnemonist (someone who can memorize large amounts of data) - is witness to the aftermath of a stabbing. With his dying breath, Thomas McHale tells James: "I was one of them, but I left, and they didn't want me to leave. Have you seen the paper? Samedi? The conspirators? I was one of them...You must do it. You must expose them." The "them" in question is a group of individuals who commit suicide in front of the White House, one each day, all bearing a message from Samedi of doom to come on the seventh day.

McHale leaves James with a few clues; however, he is loath to get involved until a chance encounter with a young woman spurs him to action. James sets off to follow the dead man's clues and, in the process, ends up a prisoner in an asylum for liars. As he searches for truth amidst the lies, James struggles to find out who Samedi is and what will happen on the seventh day.

Samedi the Deafness is the very strange novel from poet Jesse Ball. As he states in an interview, "Samedi is an investigation of lies and responsibility." Despite this clear statement of intent, and being incredibly easy to read, reality is quickly undermined in Samedi. This is a novel which will frustrate, confound and challenge readers, who will quickly feel as if they've fallen down the rabbit hole, into a David Lynch film where political commentary is provided by Hunter S. Thompson.

The character of Samedi has direct ties to "Baron Samedi," the all-knowing loa of death from the Voodoo tradition, known for disruption, obscenity, debauchery. It should come as no surprise that Ball has chosen to take that disruption and undermine the very concept of the novel.

This is not a comfortable read, just when the reader is sure they've understand what is happening, Ball flips the tables. His underlining message is vital; readers who choose to fall into his dream world will find unexpected and important rewards hidden within.

Armchair Interviews says: The author turns the table on the unsuspecting reader.

I will spare you specifics about the book, as this is well-covered elsewhere on these interweb-tubes. Another motivation for this is because I wish for each new reader of Samedi to discover the story on their own terms as much as possible. I was looking forward to reading this novel by the poet Jesse Ball ever since I saw it was to be released. Once I got my hands on the advanced reader's copy, I paused my reading only for sleep and eating. It can go by quickly if you aren't careful to savor it, yet you don't feel as if the book is whipping you along. At the same time, the wonder and preciousness of each moment comes through in the book. The story feels like a distinct character, as if it has it's own life and agency. You come across little wisdoms uttered by the characters which initially feel as if they are meant to remain within the realm of the book, but as the book seeps into you you start to wonder which ones might function well outside the pages. And there are deeper wisdoms here, stretching across pages and sections of the book, which take longer to seep in.

The imagination present in this story is inspirational, as it is not a separate entity but the well up from which the story is drawn. Scenes from the book are still swirling about my head. I say this in contrast to another author whom I enjoy, who blurs the line between reality and the sub-/un-conscious (imaginary?), thus making reality feel unstable and foggy. This is enjoyable on its own merits, if you enjoy such a challenge. Ball's work is assured in its vagaries and imagination, which imparts a confidence on the reader rather than a fog, bringing its own challenges to the reader and reinforcing the reader's suspension of disbelief. While I speak of confidences, I should mention that Ball's writing style makes it feels like the story is being told directly to you, bestowed in confidence not to be disclosed to others. What a feeling to be in collusion with an author while reading their words!

Samedi is a good introduction to Ball's fiction writing style, which has a feel akin to prose poetry. There is talk of another of his novels being released sometime in 2008, which promises to delve deeper into imaginative realms. His other publications are worth your time, including a collection of poetry, March Book, and a collection of short stories/prose poems about an atrocious couple with a stirring joie de vivre, Vera & Linus, written with poet Thordis Bjornsdottir.

I urge you to explore the website for Samedi the Deafness, which includes audio of the author reading excerpts, videos produced by the author, and promotional materials for the populace to spread the word about Samedi. The Flash plug-in is necessary.

I was held spellbound by the clever, twisting plot of this mystery by Jesse Ball. This book is a must for anyone who wants to read something unique.

There are seven days in a week
Sunday, Monday
Tuesday, Wednesday
Thursday, Friday
Saturday*

*(popular children's ditty)

This is a strange book
Unreal
The writing style can be disjointed
Yet strangely poetic
And you can't put it down
For fear you miss something
But still
It's weird

Set over a seven day period
There's no prize for guessing
That it ends on
Saturday

The hero's name is James
James is a mnemonist
Which means he can remember lots of stuff
In a very short time
Which you will agree is pretty weird
But then things get weirder
When he comes across a man
With stab wounds
Who dies

Then there be suicides
And James is kidnapped
And taken to a verisylum
Which is where they treat chronic liars
If you can believe that

But then it gets more interesting

The building is like a maze
With rules that would delight Lewis Carroll
And people have more than one name
Except for those whose names are the same
And he falls in love
And out of love
And in again
And he learns that he can't trust anybody
Obviously

The tension builds
As the author skillfully creates
His vision
Of what's going to happen
On Saturday

Dark and strange
Read this is you're looking for something
Different
Weird
And twisted



Amanda Richards, May 10, 2008

I want to say something about this book, but I can't. As I read between the lines, I found profound density. When I read the lines themselves, I found flatness. I hoped the spaces within would prove true when I got to the seventh day. But I was left more alone than James.

It is a great book, very interesting. It took a while (1 month) to reach over here (Europe) but it is worth waiting for it.

This is a very quick read that doesn't leave you quickly. Ball has written a book with violence that we never see; with characters we don' t really get to know; set in a place we never identify; about events that hopefully will never happen.

He has a relaxed style of writing that makes the story move along. I hope he writes more - soon!