The location is not identified, nor is the year but on an island somewhere things are disappearing. No one knows why and no one really tries to find out. It is already underway when the novel begins. First it is little things like hats, ribbons, and eventually it is birds and flowers. When the object disappears, so does the memory of it. Except for a small group of people who do remember and it is that group that the memory police are hunting down.
Our heroine, who is a writer, tries to save a friend who remembers (her editor) with the help of an older man and a dog. He lives under her floorboards for we don't know how long. As a reader you will have to accept there are many unexplained things and if that upsets you, you may not want to read this book. But both the idea and the execution is so skillful you will be missing a book much like ones by Atwood, Huxley, Orwell but with its own sensibility and lovely writing. I admired all of the things she didn't explain. And truly you didn't need them explained.
The Memory Police was originally published in 1994 but finally translated last year.
13 comments:
I liked it a lot, but found it works better as allegory than as science fiction. Too much is unexplained for it to work as SF. The setting has to be around Japan since there are a couple of Japanese references. I have read a collection of her short stories called Revenge which is also very good.
Sounds like a very unique approach to writing a novel. I hadn't heard of it, but it sounds very interesting. Thank you for sharing about it.
I keep hearing how good this is, Patti, but I haven't read it. Thanks for the reminder, and I'm glad you enjoyed it.
Sounds good, Patti. I'll keep my eyes open for it. Thanks.
I've seen this book around. I'll have to pick up a copy.
Yes, it is really not science fiction. The world is too familiar, only this dilemma makes it different. I will look for the stories, Steve.
The world is depressing us too much at this moment to want to read this now. Maybe at another time.
Patti, "only the dilemma makes it different" describes a fair amount of near-future or alternate history sf.
Cullen, see "John Grant"'s review of the novel in last week's Friday Books list.
And "John"'s review is listed under his real name, Paul Barnett, first, so is not too far along after Patti's...
I have not read enough to know, Todd. A real gap in my reading.
And probably the word dilemma is not right. Perhaps "central conceit?"
That certainly works, the premise...and it's a fine set of borders between absurdist fiction, fantasy and sf in this regard.
I am interested in reading this book sometime. It was good to see the discussion of what type of book it is here, I was wondering about that.
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