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The Starved Lover Sings
How much can one land take?
How much can one man take?
What if the rains kept coming?
What if the huge waves kept crashing in? What if the plates kept shifting and volcanoes kept up their choking spew? What if neighbouring nations became more antagonistic and the rest of the world began to forget you?
It’s the not-too-distant-future and a certain Asian country is in physical and moral tatters. What was once a polite society has become fouled and corrupted. Part-time referee and full-time PE teacher, Tombo, stands in the middle of all this, trying to find fairness and balance in his own life, as things continue to crumble around him. Added to his personal miseries – missing-presumed-dead daughter, eerily silent wife, unrequited lusts – comes the unwanted, unwarranted attention of two, mean-spirited, wrathful adolescent girls, who have decided that he is to be their “chosen one”.
Can this harangued Everyman battle against the forces that envelop him, or will he too fall to the whims of the new dystopia?
In this pulsing, provocative, visionary work, O’Sullivan couples his usual lyrical fervour with a philosophical acuity to present before us a trembling world that may not be too far away...
As well as being an absurd existential novel it is also a political satire, and a cautionary tale about what may lay ahead, therefore a novel very much for our times.
“Colin O'Sullivan's writing is an antic, mordant and perverse plunge into strange and unnerving worlds.” Colin Barrett
How much can one man take?
What if the rains kept coming?
What if the huge waves kept crashing in? What if the plates kept shifting and volcanoes kept up their choking spew? What if neighbouring nations became more antagonistic and the rest of the world began to forget you?
It’s the not-too-distant-future and a certain Asian country is in physical and moral tatters. What was once a polite society has become fouled and corrupted. Part-time referee and full-time PE teacher, Tombo, stands in the middle of all this, trying to find fairness and balance in his own life, as things continue to crumble around him. Added to his personal miseries – missing-presumed-dead daughter, eerily silent wife, unrequited lusts – comes the unwanted, unwarranted attention of two, mean-spirited, wrathful adolescent girls, who have decided that he is to be their “chosen one”.
Can this harangued Everyman battle against the forces that envelop him, or will he too fall to the whims of the new dystopia?
In this pulsing, provocative, visionary work, O’Sullivan couples his usual lyrical fervour with a philosophical acuity to present before us a trembling world that may not be too far away...
As well as being an absurd existential novel it is also a political satire, and a cautionary tale about what may lay ahead, therefore a novel very much for our times.
“Colin O'Sullivan's writing is an antic, mordant and perverse plunge into strange and unnerving worlds.” Colin Barrett
266 pages, Paperback
Published April 13, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
April 3, 2021
Great novel, great writer: babbling youtube available: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3i-Qb...
March 8, 2018
Poor old Tombo. The protagonist at the centre of The Starved Lover Sings is just a man trying to live, no enjoy, his life, but this is made near on impossible with the dystopian setting of Japan; a tsunami has taken his daughter and left his wife bedbound with grief, groups of boys taunt him for his decision-making as a part-time referee and young girls obsess over him as their P.E teacher. Tombo stands in the midst of this whirlwind as O’Sullivan delves into the daunting future our world could face as well as the timeless human struggle for purpose.
It is not only the setting that is disruptive. The narrative, too, carries a lyricism and magical quality that sees the plot flow in and out of the characters’ stories to bring life to mountains and mudslides, as well as touching on poetic excerpts that elevate this novel and the poignancy of Tombo’s existence and his battle against life’s hardships.
The story carries a strong existentialist tone, with the image of a referee grappling for balance and order in a world that refuses to offer it. But there is also beauty in the sadness and the struggle - there are moments of great humanity despite the recurring use of technology to fill an emotional void by many of the characters. O’Sullivan taps into the dark weight of grief but also shows us the affective power of human interaction. It must be said, too, that there is a dry comedic value that works its way through the novel, and at moments I didn’t expect to I found myself smiling or laughing to myself. Whilst Tombo struggles to find balance, then, this novel definitely achieves it. With a wonderful mix of dystopia, magic and comedy it proves itself a provocative and enchanting read.
It is not only the setting that is disruptive. The narrative, too, carries a lyricism and magical quality that sees the plot flow in and out of the characters’ stories to bring life to mountains and mudslides, as well as touching on poetic excerpts that elevate this novel and the poignancy of Tombo’s existence and his battle against life’s hardships.
The story carries a strong existentialist tone, with the image of a referee grappling for balance and order in a world that refuses to offer it. But there is also beauty in the sadness and the struggle - there are moments of great humanity despite the recurring use of technology to fill an emotional void by many of the characters. O’Sullivan taps into the dark weight of grief but also shows us the affective power of human interaction. It must be said, too, that there is a dry comedic value that works its way through the novel, and at moments I didn’t expect to I found myself smiling or laughing to myself. Whilst Tombo struggles to find balance, then, this novel definitely achieves it. With a wonderful mix of dystopia, magic and comedy it proves itself a provocative and enchanting read.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews