The Ventriloquist's Tale
by Pauline Melville
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Book Summary Information
Author: Pauline MelvilleEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 1999-06-19
ISBN: 1582340269
Number of pages: 368
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Book Reviews of The Ventriloquist's Tale
Book Review: A handful of Lust
Summary: 5 Stars
An Englishwoman arrives in Guyana to do some research on the travels of Evelyn Waugh in the region. She encounters Chofy, an Amerindian whose family gave Waugh shelter. Yet the truth is hard to discern, hidden by an epic story of forbidden love... 'The Ventriloquist's Tale' won the Whitbread First Novel Award, and was shortlisted for the Orange Prize. It's not difficult to see why, since this is a stunning read. Of the several excellent novels I have read this year, this one stands out as being the most consistent. It promises to deliver much, and does not fail to meet these high expectations. Pauline Melville has produced a highly brilliant debut novel. As befitting a tale by a ventriloquist, many voices are imitated, but imitated is too poor a word, for each voice is vibrant, alive, and wholly convincing. I read the novel mostly in one day, and I now feel bereft that I have finished it, and a poor wordsmith in comparison with Melville. It seems contrary, but my block has been caused by the mighty flowing narrative of this novel, the tides of which turn this way and that, in such a way that it is hard to describe, except to say that it is beautiful. This is the novel at its best: 'The Ventriloquist's Tale' could not work in any other medium, not least because it contains so many rich stories
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