As a lover of medieval architecture, the title of this book caught my attention immediately. Unfortunately, upon reading the synopsis, it lost me; but only temporarily. It's the type of book where I really have to think, do I want to invest my time in this? Thankfully, I did. The Gargoyle, Winnipeg native Andrew Davidson's first novel, delivered on so many levels. And, surprisingly, given the brutal nature of certain parts of the story, presents some of the best examples of tender, true, unconditional love.
The narrator begins his life unwanted, unloved, and neglected after his mother died in childbirth. Handsome, intelligent, an avid gatherer of information, he enters the world of drugs and pornography, until an accident causes severe burns on his body and face. Enter Marianne Engel, sculptor of 'grotesques,' to his hospital bed; she comments on how this is the third time he's been burned, which gets the crux of the story going. Marianne takes the narrator into her home, where she cares for him while often feverishly working on her next grotesque, and tells him of their first meeting seven hundred years ago. Their history is interspersed with stories of 'friends' of hers from the past who personify exemplary love and unselfishness and play a role in the narrator's recovery.
The graphic details of the narrator's accident and physical rehabilitation early in the book does not (thankfully) set the tone for the remainder of the novel, although is it an important element in helping him on the road to redemption. The language and acts of caring and love between the characters are, I found, inspirational without feeling trite or exaggerated. The author does an excellent job of intertwining of medieval history with the present. His characters, although unusual, did not seem unreal or exaggerated.
Andrew Davidson put seven years of research into writing The Gargoyle. I hope he does not take that long to release his next work.
Pat
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