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A Man of Marbles
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
August 4, 2023
There has been many an attempt to portray the simple person in the arts, be that The Idiot by Dostoevsky, The Fool on The Hill by The Beatles and even Banksy with his I am an Imbecile balloon.
Not that I particularly wish to compare A Man of Marbles by an obscure Australian journalist, novelist and poet to such an illustrious group as those mentioned above, but this just might be the closest thing that I have read in Australian literature that relates to the idiot who is a fool and an imbecile but then is not. The cover of my copy is the brilliant Moses Leading the People by Arthur Boyd and has me wondering what it was that author Rod Usher was trying to tell us in this rather clever tale of the man with an innate and simple goodness of heart and head trying to deal with circumstantial adversity thrust upon him.
“No one can be good for long if goodness is not in demand.” observes Bertolt Brecht.
“’I’ve hundreds of things to say, but my tongue just cannot manage them. So I’ll dance then for you! Here goes’” Zorba the Greek pronounces.
“There is always the possibility that certain relatively clear pointers towards various events and actions will be misinterpreted or lost as mere hints.” Heinrich Boll tells us.
“……today you have flung away with your own hand all the advantages which an interrogation invariably confers on an innocent man.” says Kafka.
“Fame, after all, is only the quintessence of all the misunderstandings that collect around a new name” Rilke wisely states.
“’Weight up the pros and cons, Yannakos; this might get you into trouble’ ‘I’ve weighed them again and again, Konstandis, the weights are just right for me” remarks Kazantzakis shrewdly remarks.
Usher quotes from many sources as he gives us Stavro ‘Stan’ Kristopolis, a tender-hearted young man who lives with his very Greek/Australian parents as a green grocer in that very Greek and at the same time cosmopolitan city that is Melbourne. To tell Stan’s story of simple goodness and joy that each day brings him with such trivial delights as his pet rabbit would be to give the plot away. The plot is a simple one really, but it is with those more famous literary quotes that bring each chapter together in a wise and very witty telling of innocence never really lost or gained. The plot challenges us to look into our hearts and heads and face the fact that the majority of all humankind sees simple pleasure as not that intelligent, sees uncomplicated goodness as witless.
It also asks who have lost their marbles; you, me, or that oddity dancing in the street?
Recommended to the non-conformist or those that who seek the Promised Land.
Not that I particularly wish to compare A Man of Marbles by an obscure Australian journalist, novelist and poet to such an illustrious group as those mentioned above, but this just might be the closest thing that I have read in Australian literature that relates to the idiot who is a fool and an imbecile but then is not. The cover of my copy is the brilliant Moses Leading the People by Arthur Boyd and has me wondering what it was that author Rod Usher was trying to tell us in this rather clever tale of the man with an innate and simple goodness of heart and head trying to deal with circumstantial adversity thrust upon him.
“No one can be good for long if goodness is not in demand.” observes Bertolt Brecht.
“’I’ve hundreds of things to say, but my tongue just cannot manage them. So I’ll dance then for you! Here goes’” Zorba the Greek pronounces.
“There is always the possibility that certain relatively clear pointers towards various events and actions will be misinterpreted or lost as mere hints.” Heinrich Boll tells us.
“……today you have flung away with your own hand all the advantages which an interrogation invariably confers on an innocent man.” says Kafka.
“Fame, after all, is only the quintessence of all the misunderstandings that collect around a new name” Rilke wisely states.
“’Weight up the pros and cons, Yannakos; this might get you into trouble’ ‘I’ve weighed them again and again, Konstandis, the weights are just right for me” remarks Kazantzakis shrewdly remarks.
Usher quotes from many sources as he gives us Stavro ‘Stan’ Kristopolis, a tender-hearted young man who lives with his very Greek/Australian parents as a green grocer in that very Greek and at the same time cosmopolitan city that is Melbourne. To tell Stan’s story of simple goodness and joy that each day brings him with such trivial delights as his pet rabbit would be to give the plot away. The plot is a simple one really, but it is with those more famous literary quotes that bring each chapter together in a wise and very witty telling of innocence never really lost or gained. The plot challenges us to look into our hearts and heads and face the fact that the majority of all humankind sees simple pleasure as not that intelligent, sees uncomplicated goodness as witless.
It also asks who have lost their marbles; you, me, or that oddity dancing in the street?
Recommended to the non-conformist or those that who seek the Promised Land.
September 3, 2011
‘Because that’s not the way Stavros does things, I suppose.’
Stavros ‘Stan’ Kristopolis is an Australian greengrocer of Greek heritage. Stan, aged 34, lives and works with his parents Alex and Marie in Richmond, a working class area of Melbourne. When he travels to the fruit markets early in the morning to purchase produce for the day’s trading, he likes to take his white rabbit, called Doe.
‘Strange how a white rabbit can get ‘em going.’
When Stan jumps off the pavement to dance, Zorba-like in Bridge Street, the police intervene. Is Stan a fool: is his natural exuberant innocence an asset or a liability? Others are keen to apply labels, but are they appropriate?
‘The term ‘certified’ is avoided in favour of ‘recommended’ nowadays; it is easier to padlock a euphemism.’
Stan has a friend, Rose Gallagher, who works as a barmaid. Rose has a son who is in gaol, and her inability to help him (he wants a television) makes her sad. Stan decides to help but Stan’s acquisition of a television set and subsequent delivery to Rose has some unintended consequences. A few days later, a man is murdered outside the hotel where Rose Gallagher works, and when the police arrive Stan is with him. Stan was trying to help, as is his way, but finds himself accused of murder. The evidence? Well, Gus Erickson, the murdered man had a relationship with Rose, and jealousy is considered to be the motive. It’s enough to get Stan remanded and Rose sacked. When Stan is convicted of murder and incarcerated in Pentridge Gaol he seems to take it in his stride.
’He got annoyed, at times, flattened, suffered loneliness and fear, but his reserves were never plumbed.'
Fortunately for Stan, corroborating evidence will come to light and he will be set free.
I first read this novel in 2009, and reread it recently to try to understand why I enjoyed it so much. Stan is a lovely person, but his passive innocence makes him an unusual hero. There is a wonderful scene where Stan introduces the game of marbles to his fellow prisoners and some delightful interactions with customers and friends in his pre-gaol life. Stan succeeds in his own life on his own terms, other events may intervene but they do not distract him for long. There’s a lot to admire about Stan.
‘For the first time in his life his son the fool seemed rather wise.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
Stavros ‘Stan’ Kristopolis is an Australian greengrocer of Greek heritage. Stan, aged 34, lives and works with his parents Alex and Marie in Richmond, a working class area of Melbourne. When he travels to the fruit markets early in the morning to purchase produce for the day’s trading, he likes to take his white rabbit, called Doe.
‘Strange how a white rabbit can get ‘em going.’
When Stan jumps off the pavement to dance, Zorba-like in Bridge Street, the police intervene. Is Stan a fool: is his natural exuberant innocence an asset or a liability? Others are keen to apply labels, but are they appropriate?
‘The term ‘certified’ is avoided in favour of ‘recommended’ nowadays; it is easier to padlock a euphemism.’
Stan has a friend, Rose Gallagher, who works as a barmaid. Rose has a son who is in gaol, and her inability to help him (he wants a television) makes her sad. Stan decides to help but Stan’s acquisition of a television set and subsequent delivery to Rose has some unintended consequences. A few days later, a man is murdered outside the hotel where Rose Gallagher works, and when the police arrive Stan is with him. Stan was trying to help, as is his way, but finds himself accused of murder. The evidence? Well, Gus Erickson, the murdered man had a relationship with Rose, and jealousy is considered to be the motive. It’s enough to get Stan remanded and Rose sacked. When Stan is convicted of murder and incarcerated in Pentridge Gaol he seems to take it in his stride.
’He got annoyed, at times, flattened, suffered loneliness and fear, but his reserves were never plumbed.'
Fortunately for Stan, corroborating evidence will come to light and he will be set free.
I first read this novel in 2009, and reread it recently to try to understand why I enjoyed it so much. Stan is a lovely person, but his passive innocence makes him an unusual hero. There is a wonderful scene where Stan introduces the game of marbles to his fellow prisoners and some delightful interactions with customers and friends in his pre-gaol life. Stan succeeds in his own life on his own terms, other events may intervene but they do not distract him for long. There’s a lot to admire about Stan.
‘For the first time in his life his son the fool seemed rather wise.’
Jennifer Cameron-Smith
August 29, 2025
Richmond in a time when I grew up. I know the pub, the traffic, the language and the streets. A poignant reminder of those times.
March 13, 2013
Top ten book!
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews