Book Review: Borges and Me: An Encounter by Jay Parini
This book appears to be and reads like a memoir, and in most ways it is; however, Parini explains in an afterword that the events, though true, took place fifty years ago, and though he had “a handful of notes, with scraps of conversation” from his journal of that year, he was relying mostly on his memory when he wrote it. Therefore, he says, it probably fits better into the category of autobiographical fiction rather than memoir, because he had to reconstruct dialog he only vaguely recalls.
No matter. It is the spirit and tone that is important, not the details. And in fact, this book is a delight, an uplift, and a blast of intellectual acuity, as if Jorge Luis Borges himself, the Argentine master of magic realism who won numerous awards and influenced countless other writers, entered the room and began to speak in his inimitable, eclectic manner.
It is set in the early seventies. Partially to evade being drafted and sent off to Vietnam and partially to escape his bland Middle American family, Parini decides to pursue graduate studies in literature at the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. Borges doesn’t appear until about page eighty. Be patient. Parini needs to set up some necessary background for the road trip to follow. Once Borges does make his entrance, as a houseguest of Parini’s mentor Alistair Reid (who is translating some of Borges’s works) the narrative bursts into life.
Borges is old and blind, and yet his intellect is undimmed. His observations are rife with the metaphysical complexities that are liberally strewn throughout his works. When they meet, Parini, an aspiring writer, has never heard of Borges or read any of his stories, and Borges baffles him, with his constant references to mythology, quotes from poetry, and cosmic metaphors. Reid and his son need to go to London, so Reid asks Parini to stay with elderly blind Borges for several days until he gets back. Almost as soon as Parini arrives at Reid’s cottage, though, Borges insists that they go on a road trip through Scotland together.
Adventures ensue. During a storm, Borges falls down a roadside slope, hurts his head, and has to be taken to a hospital. While rowing on Loch Ness, Borges stands up in the boat and tips it over, and Parini has to save him from drowning in the frigid water. Borges gets lost in a maze near a castle until Parini finds and rescues him. Throughout these misadventures, Borges regales Parini with wit, insight, and guidance; at first Parini wonders what he’s gotten himself into, but as their trip progresses, he respects and appreciates Borges more and more. Their conversations are glorious: full of creative ideas and literary allusions. At times, as I read, I laughed out loud or clapped with glee. As Parini explains: “One felt somehow more intelligent, more learned and witty, in his presence. The universe itself felt more pliable and yielding, and so available.”
In the end, Parini’s relationships with a friend in Vietnam he corresponds with, a Scottish woman he feels drawn to, his mentor Reid, and Borges are all resolved in a very touching way. And it makes no difference whether you want to call the book autobiographical fiction or memoir; it is excellent, and I highly recommend it.
