The Barnes are an Irish middle class family, already a bit on the well-off side, one could say, who suffer from the effect of the financial crisis on their business and at the same time from a family crisis, that is, a crisis of trust or belonging, also of identity. There is not really one protagonist in the novel, maybe it's the two parents, although the children play a very significant role in the family upheaval, as well. In alternating paragraphs, the author tells us about the past and the present as well as the point of view of each member of the family and with this very simple premise the author manages to sustain our interest for the whole of about 600 pages. It's a fairly long novel, especially by today's standards, but I can’t stress how I enjoyed it enough.
We are in a small town in Ireland around the year 2008 when the financial crisis hits. With each of the characters focused, the writing style changes accordingly - a technique which is brilliantly executed by Murray. We start with Cassandra Barnes, – Cass, she is in her last year of high school and is preparing to go to study at university in the big city with her best friend Elaine. She and Elaine have a rather difficult relationship, something of an unhealthy love, perhaps because Elaine’s family is also in a bit of a crisis. I loved how the author delves into this phase of life, that of being 19 or 20 years old and constantly shaken by extreme emotions and neither parents nor friends seem to be there to help.
PJ, Cass’s younger brother is what we call a nerd, a nerd of random information about nature and video games. He also has friends who harm him more than they do him good, and he, too, feels abandoned by his family. Imelda, is Cass’s and PJ’s mother, her chapters or paragraphs, are written almost without punctuation, in stream-of-thought mode, highlighting her lack of formal education. She comes from a very poor family with a very violent father and several older brothers. She is socially admired for her stunning beauty and also usually knows the right thing to say at every moment.
Dickie, Imelda's husband, is rather introverted and very good
natured, a bit naive, he manages Barnes motors, the family owned
Volkswagen dealership garage that sells and repairs cars. He took
over his father's business as it has always been the plan. He studied
at the famous Trinity University in Dublin and is a nature buff like
his son PJ is. He recently has been neglecting his work to build a
future-proof bunker in the forest with his half-crazy friend,
Victor.
Mauricio, Dickie's father and the boys’ grandfather is
rich and enjoys his retirement in Portugal, playing golf. Imelda
insists that Dickie call him to help save the business from
bankruptcy. Why does Dickie evade his responsibilities? And why are
there no wedding photos in their home? What’s up with the
squirrels?
The author narrates with humour, it is a quick read, it is very balanced in the sense that none of the characters is either dominantly bad or good. What I appreciated most is that it really does give an in-depth psychological portrait of Imelda and Dickie with all the experiences they have been through together, of the family as a system that struggles when one of its pillars weakens, for some reason. And the ways it can catch balance again, reaffirming love as the central force - or completely crash.
Most of the reviews I had read before starting the book basically
said that the ending is a bit bold and not what they would expect for
a novel like that, but that the book was worth it anyway. The ending
is a bit open and a bit crazy and I don't like it a lot, but it
didn't bother me that much, as I find the main interest lies in the
stunning characters and not the plot. Maybe it didn't bother me
because I was forewarned. It also changes from third to second person
and I usually don't like that stylistic device at all, but I didn't
think it was so bad, as it has the effect of making you immerse even
more into the action.
The Bee Sting is the fourth novel by
Dublin author Paul Murray.
Los Barnes son una familia, digamos de clase media ya un poco acomodada, que sufre la crisis financiera y la vez una crisis de familia, esto es de confianza o de pertenencia, también de identidad. No se podría decir que haya un protagonista, lo son los dos padres quizás. El autor nos cuenta en parágrafos alternantes un poco irregularmente el pasado y el presente y el punto de vista de cada miembro de la familia y con esta premisa tan simple el autor consigue mantener nuestro interés durante unas 600 páginas. Es una novela bastante larga sobre todo por los estándares de hoy en día.
Muchas reseñas que leí básicamente dijeron que el final es una mierda, pero que el libro valga la pena igual. El final es un tanto abierto y no me gustan muchas veces, pero tengo que decir que no me molestó tanto. Será porque estaba prevenida. También cambia de tercera a segunda persona y eso no me suele gustar nada, pero no me pareció tan mal, tiene el efecto de identificarse aún más con los personajes.
Estamos en una pequeña ciudad en Irlanda alrededor de la crisis del 2008.
Cassandra, – Cass, está en su último año de secundaria y se prepara para ir a estudiar a la gran ciudad con su mejor amiga Elaine. Ella y Elaine tienen una relación bastante difícil, algo de amor malsano, quizás debido a que la familia de Elaine también esta un poco en crisis. Me encantó como el autor describe esta fase de vida, eso de tener 19 o 20 años y estar constantemente sacudido por emociones extremas y ni los padres ni los amigos ayudan.
PJ, hermano pequeño de Cass es lo que llamamos un nerd, un nerd de información random sobre naturaleza y de jugar videojuegos. También él tiene amigos que le dañan más de que le hacen bien, también él se siente medio abandonado por su familia. Imelda, es la madre de Cass y PJ, sus capítulos, o párrafos, están escrito casi sin puntuación, en modo stream of thought, resaltando que ella no tuvo educación formal. Viene de una familia muy pobre y con un padre muy violento y varios hermanos mayores. Ella es admirada por su impresionante belleza y también suele saber lo que decir en cada momento.
Dickie, marido de Imelda es más bien introvertido y muy bueno, un tanto ingenuo, es gerente de Barnes motors, el garaje concesionario de Volkswagen que vende y repara. Retomó el negocio de su padre como siempre fue el plan. Estudió en la famosa Trinity University en Dublin y se interesa por el medio ambiente como su hijo PJ. Recientemente descuida su trabajo para construir un future proof bunker en la floresta con su amigo medio loco, Victor.
Mauricio, el padre de Dickie y abuelo de los chicos es rico y vive su jubilación en Portugal jugando golf. Imelda insiste que Dickie lo llame para ayudarle a sacar el negocio de la crisis.
El autor cuenta con humor, se lee rápido, es muy balanceado en el sentido que nadie de los personajes mayores es solo malo o solo bueno. El estilo describiría como neutro, lo que en mi ver es muy bueno, ni trata de hacer las supermetáforas, ni llama la atención por usar palabras complicadas ni se repite.
Lo que más aprecio es que realmente logra un retrato psicológico profundizado de Imelda y Dickie, de la familia como sistema que falla cuando un pillar de ella debilita por alguna razón.
Muy recomendado!
Fun fact: No pude dejar de pensar que en alguna manera la familia se parece a la familia de la serie Los Sopranos aunque hay obviamente grandes diferencias:
PJ y AJ, Cass y Meadow, Dickie y Tony, Imelda y Carmela.
