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The Bourgeois Empire
Paranoia, pills, and torrent after torrent of glorious porn. A marriage devoid of both sex and emotion. A broken hand, a perpetually surreal home reno, a dying dog.
For Jules, a successful professional with a wife and kids, all of this would be manageable – if it wasn’t for Charlie. Because fifteen-year-old girls, dear reader, are something different entirely.
Jules is obsessed with a teenager – he’s falling head over heels and attempting to arrest the march of time. He's a man, dammit – a man’s man, a guy’s guy – and that’s all that matters.
The Bourgeois Empire, Evie Christie's first novel, is a Nabokovian fever dream, an encyclopedic guide to mortal sin, and a thoroughly contemporary reimagining of Billy Wilder’s classic film The Lost Weekend. And yes, of course, it’s a love story too.
For Jules, a successful professional with a wife and kids, all of this would be manageable – if it wasn’t for Charlie. Because fifteen-year-old girls, dear reader, are something different entirely.
Jules is obsessed with a teenager – he’s falling head over heels and attempting to arrest the march of time. He's a man, dammit – a man’s man, a guy’s guy – and that’s all that matters.
The Bourgeois Empire, Evie Christie's first novel, is a Nabokovian fever dream, an encyclopedic guide to mortal sin, and a thoroughly contemporary reimagining of Billy Wilder’s classic film The Lost Weekend. And yes, of course, it’s a love story too.
- GenresFiction
112 pages, Paperback
First published September 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews
September 17, 2018
The situation is straightforward and familiar to us -- a man who is successful at some white-collar moneymaking job, has a family and dog, and still feels the need to have transgressive sexual affairs.
No time is wasted before bringing in the 15-year-old girl who initiates an affair with him. She is both innocent and very much not innocent; their relationship is at least reasonably equal. Of course it is still not equal because one of them is an adult, who is expected to know better. Meanwhile, his family life continues to be tedious and distressing. It is notable that his family does not make any attempt to "trap" him; family and friends are indeed very tolerant and indulgent.
All of this is narrated in the second person by what we assume is his own memory speaking to him about the story, while recounting it to him. This narrator might be expected to play the part of his conscience, but is essentially non-judgemental. His actions and the consequences are laid out for him mostly factually, with only some wry commentary.
I thought that the lack of moral opposition from either his family or the narrator is what makes the book work so well. His actions are presented as choices that he makes: if he wishes to spend his leisure time locked away from his family looking at internet pornography; if he wishes to have uninspiring sexual encounters with whomever, that is up to him. He doesn't think particularly highly of himself, and the narration leaves us with an even lower opinion of him.
I'm still not sure exactly what I took away from the story. The obvious moral is, "Don't be like Jules!", but there's much more to it than that.
No time is wasted before bringing in the 15-year-old girl who initiates an affair with him. She is both innocent and very much not innocent; their relationship is at least reasonably equal. Of course it is still not equal because one of them is an adult, who is expected to know better. Meanwhile, his family life continues to be tedious and distressing. It is notable that his family does not make any attempt to "trap" him; family and friends are indeed very tolerant and indulgent.
All of this is narrated in the second person by what we assume is his own memory speaking to him about the story, while recounting it to him. This narrator might be expected to play the part of his conscience, but is essentially non-judgemental. His actions and the consequences are laid out for him mostly factually, with only some wry commentary.
I thought that the lack of moral opposition from either his family or the narrator is what makes the book work so well. His actions are presented as choices that he makes: if he wishes to spend his leisure time locked away from his family looking at internet pornography; if he wishes to have uninspiring sexual encounters with whomever, that is up to him. He doesn't think particularly highly of himself, and the narration leaves us with an even lower opinion of him.
I'm still not sure exactly what I took away from the story. The obvious moral is, "Don't be like Jules!", but there's much more to it than that.
November 25, 2013
Addicting, challenging, candy-coated. Yum.
Displaying 1 - 2 of 2 reviews