Review by aacodreanu -- Seven at Two Past Five by Tara Basi

[aacodreanu]

[Following is a volunteer review of "Seven at Two Past Five" by Tara Basi.]

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4 out of 4 stars

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Seven at Two Past Five is a delight for absurdism lovers. According to Amazon, author Tara Basi has written several novels, and one of his works was shortlisted for the Nobel Prize in 2012.

The writer is a master at bringing the absurd to the front, by contrasting it to the most insignificant and inconspicuous elements of normal reality. The Merriam-Webster dictionary defines the absurd as 'the state or condition in which human beings exist in an irrational and meaningless universe and in which human life has no ultimate meaning'. This is what the reader gets, down to the very end, when everything falls into place, and Free Will apparently will decide on the fate of the world.

An unexpected but happy event happens in the life of an old woman, a button maker, and this causes a cascade of other events: one night, the Terrors that used to haunt Seven/ Abi’s night dreams, cease to torment the button maker. Normality stands on Abi’s side; she tries to understand what is happening to her, as she is brought to trial, accused and condemned for not having been visited by the "Terrors" that night. It is as if their disappearance had been her fault. It is normal for Abi to appeal the judgment, to try to make sense of the entire situation, so she goes all the way to the Supreme Court. In her struggle, Abi has an ally in the person of Zero, an administrative officer in the legal system. Zero calls Abi "Ma", and behaves like a son, supporting her in her ordeal, so that by the end of it all, it becomes clear to her that he is her son.

Against initial appearances, most of the characters are good. Abi, a dear old lady of meager strength, content with a life dedicated to the humble creation of buttons, proves to be very intelligent, determined and compassionate. Other characters behave erratically and change sides during the proceedings, like Mary M: Abi’s judge first, and, later on, her defender. The reader witnesses lots of emotions, lots of bodily fluids, smells, dirt but also cleanliness, giant bats and other animals, one character changing gender in the middle of the conversation, a three-headed judge, all the good stuff of absurdism.

There is an exceptionally wide range of styles displayed in dialogs, in contrast with Abi's simple and direct narration of events in the first person. The four Marys, Abi's first accusers, use foul language when they talk among themselves: "feck" and all variations of it are used in almost every line. On the other hand, when Abi addresses the administration and the legal personae she comes into contact with (solicitors, barristers, judges), she uses a very elaborate and proper formal way of address – her normality highlighting, even more, the absurdity of the others’ speeches and behaviors.

The book reminded me of Lewis Caroll’s Alice in Wonderland, Charles Dickens’ Bleak House and Franz Kafka's novels, among others. The reader is spoiled with words and expressions coming from vast realms of English: as used in the States by teenagers (Zero), by public school educated Brits, present-day IT wizards, the media, judiciary officers, scientists, psychologists, and priests, among themselves and in interactions with the client/worshiper.

What I am a little reluctant about is the use of the Bible as a core structure of the events happening in the book. I had hoped for a good while that the Marys, the first hint to the Book, were unrelated to the Bible but they were. On the other hand, I doubt if the novel had had the same effect, had it used another analogy. Anyway, I believe that some Christian readers might object to the way the symbols were used.

The book has been edited professionally: I have just found two or three minor errors.

Considering all of the above, I will grant this wonderful novel four out of four stars for freshness and imagination as well as kindness and love and the pleasure of the unexpected that I have experienced while reading it.

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Seven at Two Past Five
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon

[Erin Painter Baker]

I am about to start reading this book and am very much looking forward to it. I recently finished another book by the author (review coming soon), and am not surprised that you think some Christian readers might object to parts of this book. I get the feeling the author is not a fan of organized religion.

[aacodreanu]

I was intending myself to review Orb, but I will read your review first. Thank you for your comment