Memory Artists - Hardcover

Moore, Jeffrey

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0670045209 ISBN 13: 9780670045204

Publisher: Penguin Books Canada, Limited, 2004

Synopsis

In the tradition of Jonathan Safran Foer and Jonathan Lethem, Jeffrey Moore effortlessly juggles different voices and narrative styles to get at the very heart of what it means to remember and to forget.

Noel Burun is a hypermnesiac synaesthete: his memory is unrelentingly exact, and he sees spoken words as vibrant explosions of colour, a sensation that often leaves him befuddled and bewildered. Adding to his frustration is his mother's slow descent into the quicksand of Alzheimer's. A man who remembers too much and a woman who remembers too little—both struggle to make sense of their worlds in a house bloated with memories.

About this title

About the Author

 

Born in Montreal, Jeffrey Moore was educated at the University of Toronto, the Sorbonne (Paris) and the University of Ottawa. His award-winning novels, published in some 20 countries, include Prisoner in a Red-Rose Chain (2000), which won the Commonwealth Writers Prize, and The Memory Artists (2004), which won the Canadian Authors Association Award. Both novels have been optioned for film. His most recent work, The Extinction Club, was nominated for the Hugh MacLennan Prize, the Arthur Ellis Award and the IMPAC Dublin Literary Award. He lives in Val Morin in the Laurentians.

 

Review

“Combines smartness with wisdom...Almost absurdly inventive.” ―David Mitchell, author of Cloud Atlas

“The Memory Artists is wonderful. Rich and humane, a repository of culture worth remembering, and a moving elaboration on the simple truth that we should do good for others.” ―Colin McAdam, author of Some Great Thing

“[a] dashing, postmodern novel...Moore exhibits a nimble, sprightly touch, with understated emotive depths; his rendering of Stella's sadly solipsistic diary is particularly heart-wrenching.” ―Publishers Weekly

“A model of inventiveness... very moving. Jeffrey Moore shows great skill in his depictions of people's feelings. The decadent affectations of Norval, the immaturity of JJ and the feminine insecurities of Samira are all drawn with elegance.” ―London Times Literary Supplement

“The Memory Artists is extraordinarily erudite and written with consummate elegance. It is hilarious, filled with pathos and irony, twisted, satirical, tragicomic and extremely challenging. It is a delight... beautiful... inspired, what more can I say? Read it.” ―Chatshow Network, UK (book of the Week)

“A quick witted, hilarious contemporary tale of the tricks of memory and the senses.” ―Edinburgh-festivals.com

“Wonderfully intense.” ―The Lancet

“Canadian novelist Jeffrey Moore's finely honed wit had me barking with laughter...engaging characters, and a fine balance of warmth, insight, and eviscerating humour.” ―The Independent

“An exceptionally fine example of crossword-puzzle postmodernism: a game to savour, a half-equation to be completed with utter delight. Yet the story is unforgettably human...exhilaratingly risky - leaves the reader spellbound.” ―Scotland on Sunday

“A writer of rare elegance and wit, not averse to using slapstick academic farce when it suits his purpose. The Memory Artists is an utterly ingenious work” ―Harbourfront readings

“Jeffrey Moore's ingenious new novel is, among other things, a romp through literary iconography... In its intelligence and ingeniousness it recalls Thomas Wharton's Salamander... It is mesmerizing... reading it is like immersing oneself in a warm bath of words and ideas. There are many rich nuggets buried in the text... The writing is accomplished and memorable.” ―Wayne Grady, The Gazette

“The Memory Artists is a marvel.” ―The Edmonton Journal

“A metafictive puzzle box, a carefully structured collage of narrative voices... The novel is a delight... challenging, often beautiful, and frequently inspired narrative play.” ―Straight (Vancouver)

Edition details

• Publisher: Penguin Books Canada, Limited
• Publication date: 2004
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0670045209
• ISBN 13: 9780670045204
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 304