“Of all the things we fashioned for them that they might be comforted, dawn is the one that works. When darkness sifts from the air like fine soft soot and light spreads slowly out of the east then all but the most wretched of mankind rally. It is a spectacle we immortals enjoy, this minor daily resurrection, often we will gather at the ramparts of the clouds and gaze down upon them, our little ones, as they bestir themselves to welcome the new day. What a silence falls upon us then, the sad silence of our envy. Many of them sleep on, of course, careless of our cousin Aurora’s charming matutinal trick, but there are always the insomniacs, the restless ill, the lovelorn tossing on their solitary beds, or just the early-risers, the busy ones, with their knee-bends and their cold showers and their fussy little cups of black ambrosia. Yes, all those who witness it greet the dawn with joy, more or less, except of course the condemned man, for whom the first light will be the last, on earth.”
From John Banville’s new novel: “The Infinities.” Read this book. His prose is incomparable. And he has psychological insight that is astounding.
I have been waiting for this book. His book, “Eclipse” is the story of an aging actor facing his deterioration, and is one of my favorites. His last book, “The Sea” was an award winner, and “The Book of Evidence” is a mind-blowing, first-person confession of a savage murder, while at the same time a look inside a soulless personality. Banville is the author of fifteen novels, and a master storyteller. He gets better with every book. Enjoy writing that is on a par with the finest in the world.
Tags: "The Infinities", John Banville, new novel, The Gods
Would it be ok if I refer to this website, from my blog page? I’m planning to source as many bits of good info as I can.
I found this post very good. I searched to find something similar but it couldn`t find anything. Most of your posts are useful for me, thanks a lot.