Customer Reviews

The Voyage That Never Ends: Fictions, Poems, Fragments, Letters

5 star:		(1)
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3 star:		(1)
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I'm glad this is out there. I already owned 'Hear Us O Lord From Heaven Thy Dwelling Place' so I'd already read the two crowns in this collection, 'Through The Panama' and "Path To The Forest Spring'. I was hoping for longer excerpts from the novels, and was more than a little annoyed there was nothing at all from 'Lunar Caustic'. But what really irritated me was the editor's all-too brief introduction, lack of any individual introduction for each of the novels relating what they are about, and finally lack of any footnotes. Reading an excerpt without any idea of what larger work it was picked out of makes it much harder to enter. You are left with a lot of nice prose but no sense of story. What were Lowry's aims with this book? Where was he writing it? How far did he get towards completion? And there are references in the letters where some footnotes would have been greatly appreciated. So while I would have given the content four stars I'm giving the book three because of the editor. I can't see anyone who isn't a fan of 'Under The Volcano' being drawn into this collection.

This is by far the best collection of work by one of the greatest although sadly lesser known writers of the 20th Century. Lowry, British by birth, lived for years in Mexico and Canada, and because of his drinking his published work is a fraction of his prolific writing. This book contains a treasure chest of his lesser known work, unfinished novels, stories, letters. He is best known for his masterpiece "Under the Volcano." I read "Volcano" over 30 years ago when I was still drinking, and nothing, not even Bukowski (certainly no offense to Bukowski, a genius as well) hit me as hard as Lowry and I have always wished I could get my hands on more of his work. My wish has been granted in this definitive tome. This is the Mother Lode for Lowry fans, and anyone who appreciates truly great literature. Lowry, although at times a bit dense in language and style, is more than worth a bit of extra effort on the reader's part. His writing is impeccable, the imagery, the passion, the pain, the insights, the evocative precision of inner and outer landscapes are stunning! This book, especially in his letters, offers the reader a greater sense of the man behind the myth that has grown around a brilliant writer, who happened to be an alcoholic. Reading him at this point in my life, more than 32 years sober, I see his work in a different light and have gained a much deeper appreciation and understanding of Lowry the man, and the writer. This book is a classic; evidence of the true genius of Malcolm Lowry.- Michael Clark Lorenzo. Accidents of Birth