Edmund's review
A Dance to the Music of Time: First Movement by Anthony Powell
Part of the 12 volume novel or series of twelve novels covering the life of Nick Jenkins. It is considered the greatest long novel in English and is thought to be equal to although different than the achievement of Proust. Reading the entire series is like stepping into the life of a stranger for sixty years. I have only experienced a similar disassociation from myself while reading the Diary of Samuel Pepys.
I was led to this author by the fact that he was a good friend of George Orwell. They were an odd pair, since Orwell was a leftist and Powell a Tory or conservative. I think the simple fact was that they were beyond labels themselves and could recognize rare abilities in each other long before either of them produced the mature works that define their achievement. To this day, because of political partisanship, few people are able to appreciate both authors.
I was led to this author by the fact that he was a good friend of George Orwell. They were an odd pair, since Orwell was a leftist and Powell a Tory or conservative. I think the simple fact was that they were beyond labels themselves and could recognize rare abilities in each other long before either of them produced the mature works that define their achievement. To this day, because of political partisanship, few people are able to appreciate both authors.
