Spring Break
Amusing author, creepy storyline
Olga B. Rodriguez-Walmisley
Issue date: 1/16/09 Section: Diversions
In this grimy, poetically wrought novel by Charles Baxter,
Baxter, author of the National Book Award - nominated The Feast of Love, hits the shelves again with his ninth book, The Soul Thief. This novel is Baxter's attempt to dive into the mental limits of a character and see how far he can push himself and the character to a breaking point
Nathaniel Mason looks back on his days as a graduate student in New York, and at his mental demise at the hands of an eerily intelligent student called Jerome Coolberg.
The Soul Thief recounts how Nathaniel meets Coolberg, and how Coolberg begins to get into the head of Nathaniel until he breaks down.
Coolberg knows everything, but has nothing: that is to say, his knowledge and stories are borrowed from others' lives. Almost everything he says is a quote said by someone else; he quotes obscure and mainstream thinkers equally.
In between an on-and-off relationship with the beautiful and devastatingly intelligent Theresa and an affair with a lesbian sculptor named Jaime, Nathaniel slowly falls apart as Coolberg plays mind games with him.
Coolberg steals his clothes and wears them, researches the details of Nathaniel's life, and writes a story with Nathaniel as the protagonist. Nathaniel becomes paranoid and depressed as his identity becomes a mystery to him.
After Nathaniel's breakdown, a horrifying attack on a loved one leaves him completely without an anchor. Coolberg's claiming of Nathaniel's past as his own, and his cryptic way of speaking help to drive Nathaniel over the edge into an abyss of uncertainty and paranoia.
Told in a lyric voice, and filled with seemingly odd descriptions, The Soul Thief behaves almost like a haunting work of poetry. Charles Baxter is a master of fiction with a talent for dry wit, and leaves the reader with a haunting insight on the arduous quality of human life. Despite the weird theme, the novel is humorous and enjoyable; the reader will appreciate not only the content, but also Baxter's artful style of writing.
Olga B. Rodriguez-Walmisley
diversions@dailybarometer.com
Baxter, author of the National Book Award - nominated The Feast of Love, hits the shelves again with his ninth book, The Soul Thief. This novel is Baxter's attempt to dive into the mental limits of a character and see how far he can push himself and the character to a breaking point
Nathaniel Mason looks back on his days as a graduate student in New York, and at his mental demise at the hands of an eerily intelligent student called Jerome Coolberg.
The Soul Thief recounts how Nathaniel meets Coolberg, and how Coolberg begins to get into the head of Nathaniel until he breaks down.
Coolberg knows everything, but has nothing: that is to say, his knowledge and stories are borrowed from others' lives. Almost everything he says is a quote said by someone else; he quotes obscure and mainstream thinkers equally.
In between an on-and-off relationship with the beautiful and devastatingly intelligent Theresa and an affair with a lesbian sculptor named Jaime, Nathaniel slowly falls apart as Coolberg plays mind games with him.
Coolberg steals his clothes and wears them, researches the details of Nathaniel's life, and writes a story with Nathaniel as the protagonist. Nathaniel becomes paranoid and depressed as his identity becomes a mystery to him.
After Nathaniel's breakdown, a horrifying attack on a loved one leaves him completely without an anchor. Coolberg's claiming of Nathaniel's past as his own, and his cryptic way of speaking help to drive Nathaniel over the edge into an abyss of uncertainty and paranoia.
Told in a lyric voice, and filled with seemingly odd descriptions, The Soul Thief behaves almost like a haunting work of poetry. Charles Baxter is a master of fiction with a talent for dry wit, and leaves the reader with a haunting insight on the arduous quality of human life. Despite the weird theme, the novel is humorous and enjoyable; the reader will appreciate not only the content, but also Baxter's artful style of writing.
Olga B. Rodriguez-Walmisley
diversions@dailybarometer.com
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