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Believing Cedric
Cedric Johnson is a middle-aged insurance broker with an unusual problem. He seems to be physically flashing back to pivotal moments from his past. It begins when his third-grade teacher notices a startling awareness in an otherwise unremarkable boy. Next, Cedric inhabits his fourteen-year-old body. He continues to travel through the life he's already lived, issuing warnings and searching for answers. But why should anyone believe him?
Cedric's journeys through time bring him face to face with forgotten memories, heartbreaking loss, the possibilities of love, and the agony of a life of regret. Cedric incenses and inspires the people around him, and changes the landscapes of their lives.
Cedric's journeys through time bring him face to face with forgotten memories, heartbreaking loss, the possibilities of love, and the agony of a life of regret. Cedric incenses and inspires the people around him, and changes the landscapes of their lives.
288 pages, Paperback
First published August 3, 2011
1 person is currently reading
27 people want to read
About the author
Mark Lavorato
5 books41 followersI'm a Canadian writer, based in Montreal. I also do work as a musician and street photographer. You can see some of my work at www.marklavorato.com
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
August 24, 2011
Believing Cedric is the kind of novel that stays with you as you go about your day. The author provides sharp and perceptive snapshots of typical (and untypical) Canadian lived experiences. I have, since initially reading the novel, returned to several chapters to experience again the imagery of place and the emotion of particular events. I've been encouraged to think in new ways about my own past.
September 12, 2016
Cedric is so insignificant that he doesn't get to be the main character of his own life. When this nondescript middle-age man sees himself traveling in time to notable events of his past, he can't get anyone to acknowledge the odd phenomenon: the spotlight is always on somebody else. The poor man only appears in the negative space between the more substantial people crossing his path. Is there really a story of someone so bland? Is there a meaning to such a life? And, incidentally, how and why is he actually flashing back?
Believing Cedric is trying to answer those questions and truly, this book is spectacular. I expected no less: in 2014, it's Mark Lavorato first book that pulled me into CanLit and had me start this blog, with his remarkably thought-provoking dystopian Veracity .
But let's go back to Believing Cedric. Each chapter is similar to a short-story, the point-of-view switching to a new character: a drained teacher, an unscrupulous landlord, a petty criminal… Another time and place takes shape with vivid details, the tone of the narrative brilliantly matching the new protagonist, their history fascinating and well researched (did you know about Ukrainian internment camps in Canada?). And here is the paradox: while Cedric is traveling in time, all our attention and empathy is toward these unrelated characters, who led a not-so-spectacular but yet definitely out of the ordinary life. They are interesting, while Cedric is tragically plain. Of course, they all end up meeting Cedric at one point, who may even play a key role then… except he has no clue about it. It could have been anyone else.
As a result, we're trying to draw a portrait of Cedric from disparate, indifferent perceptions of him, sometimes a mere glimpse. This book stroke me as genius, as it basically describes the human condition: from the outside, each of us are only what other people make of us, and opinions often diverge. We are interpreted differently by our parents, kids, colleagues, friends, mere acquaintances or random encounters like the grocery store cashier. How they understand us depends on what we let them see but also on who they are.
Which brings us to another aspect of Believing Cedric. Lavorato's beautiful imagery and graceful style soon gives away that he is a poet (for his first poem collection, check Wayworn Wooden Floor, 2012). Also, art was already a central theme in Veracity. Believing Cedric questions the nature of poetry and suggests that the answer lies in the way our life is interwoven with those of the people we meet, even briefly, and despite our “blindness” to it.
Finally, I was delighted by how this book is all somewhat “self-contained”. The novel questions the meaning of the unremarkable life of Cedric and the definition of poetry and is, as a whole, a proposition for an answer. Also, the book hints at the reason for his own creation, at least in part, or entirely, depending on your interpretation. I found that it really gave a very satisfying closure, as if nothing was left unthought of. I really enjoyed how everything seems to fall into place, leaving no loose ends.
I could go on and on about this excellent book but I'll have to stop somewhere. Believing Cedric is a wonderful book, which will stay in your mind for days after you finish it and only gets better each time you reflect on it. On the surface, all the life-stories it contains are fascinating and enriching with its well-researched details. However, as you get deeper in the book, it raises fundamental questions about our human conditions, as well as the nature of poetry, and brings the book to the level of true literature. Rare are the books which offer so much in less than 300 pages. I would suggest to drop whatever you're doing and get a copy of Believing Cedric, right now.
Believing Cedric is trying to answer those questions and truly, this book is spectacular. I expected no less: in 2014, it's Mark Lavorato first book that pulled me into CanLit and had me start this blog, with his remarkably thought-provoking dystopian Veracity .
But let's go back to Believing Cedric. Each chapter is similar to a short-story, the point-of-view switching to a new character: a drained teacher, an unscrupulous landlord, a petty criminal… Another time and place takes shape with vivid details, the tone of the narrative brilliantly matching the new protagonist, their history fascinating and well researched (did you know about Ukrainian internment camps in Canada?). And here is the paradox: while Cedric is traveling in time, all our attention and empathy is toward these unrelated characters, who led a not-so-spectacular but yet definitely out of the ordinary life. They are interesting, while Cedric is tragically plain. Of course, they all end up meeting Cedric at one point, who may even play a key role then… except he has no clue about it. It could have been anyone else.
"We weren't important. We weren't someone whom you would normally remember, someone who altered a heroic past or a courageous future. And why didn't we? Well, it turned out to be much, much bigger than us, so big that we couldn't."
As a result, we're trying to draw a portrait of Cedric from disparate, indifferent perceptions of him, sometimes a mere glimpse. This book stroke me as genius, as it basically describes the human condition: from the outside, each of us are only what other people make of us, and opinions often diverge. We are interpreted differently by our parents, kids, colleagues, friends, mere acquaintances or random encounters like the grocery store cashier. How they understand us depends on what we let them see but also on who they are.
Which brings us to another aspect of Believing Cedric. Lavorato's beautiful imagery and graceful style soon gives away that he is a poet (for his first poem collection, check Wayworn Wooden Floor, 2012). Also, art was already a central theme in Veracity. Believing Cedric questions the nature of poetry and suggests that the answer lies in the way our life is interwoven with those of the people we meet, even briefly, and despite our “blindness” to it.
"If you think of your own life (…) you might be able to string its narration together using the exotic beads of those few most singular moments that you've experienced, the big turning points, the poems, until you could look at those glass colours all butted up together, side by side. But what you don't see looking at it—or even stop to consider—is that every human being that your path collides with at those poignant moments also has a string of beads, which is now intersecting with yours, and so is woven into it."
Finally, I was delighted by how this book is all somewhat “self-contained”. The novel questions the meaning of the unremarkable life of Cedric and the definition of poetry and is, as a whole, a proposition for an answer. Also, the book hints at the reason for his own creation, at least in part, or entirely, depending on your interpretation. I found that it really gave a very satisfying closure, as if nothing was left unthought of. I really enjoyed how everything seems to fall into place, leaving no loose ends.
I could go on and on about this excellent book but I'll have to stop somewhere. Believing Cedric is a wonderful book, which will stay in your mind for days after you finish it and only gets better each time you reflect on it. On the surface, all the life-stories it contains are fascinating and enriching with its well-researched details. However, as you get deeper in the book, it raises fundamental questions about our human conditions, as well as the nature of poetry, and brings the book to the level of true literature. Rare are the books which offer so much in less than 300 pages. I would suggest to drop whatever you're doing and get a copy of Believing Cedric, right now.
July 2, 2013
This was a novel that engrossed me for most of the weekend. Imagine if you had the ability to go back in time and relive certain moments in your life. You are able to issue warning and search for answers for the meanings in your life. But is this a real gift or is it some sort of psychological problem you are suffering from. That is the dilemma Mark Lavorato gave his main character in his novel Believing Cedric.
page 20-21
The other students shifted, not knowing whether to look at Cedric or Mrs. O'Donnell. Some of them looked back and forth at the two of them in rapid succession, as if watching a Ping-Pong match, trying to get the look on both of their faces at the same time.
"WHAT," she spat, "did you just say to me?"
He grinned, raised an eyebrow. "I-uh . . . was just pointing out that you might've been a little out of hand there. That's all."
Mrs. O'Donnell's eyebrows were moving in strange ways on her forehead. Her mouth was agape, but it seemed very unlikely that any sound was going to come out of it. She turned to make eye contact with a few of the other children, as if checking to see that they were hearing what she was hearing. It seemed so. They were almost giddy with excitement, watching to see what would happen next, enthralled.
"I mean," Cedric's voice broke into the quiet again, everyone turning back toward him mechanically, including Mrs. O'Donnell. He waved a flippant hand in the air as he relaxed in his seat, "That's my take on it, at least."
Mrs. O'Donnell swallowed. She noticed that her breathing had become quick and that there was a musty taste in her throat, the taste, in fact, that precedes the acrid tang of bile. Then she heard her voice, speaking as if it were far away, dampened and muffled like something was covering her ears. "Cedric, I want you to go out into the hall. Right now. Do you hear me?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "Sure." He stepped out of his desk and walked through the classroom, slowly, with a confident gait - not cocky, not a strut, but like someone who knew how to walk away from a confrontation with the air that he had won.
A longer review
page 20-21
The other students shifted, not knowing whether to look at Cedric or Mrs. O'Donnell. Some of them looked back and forth at the two of them in rapid succession, as if watching a Ping-Pong match, trying to get the look on both of their faces at the same time.
"WHAT," she spat, "did you just say to me?"
He grinned, raised an eyebrow. "I-uh . . . was just pointing out that you might've been a little out of hand there. That's all."
Mrs. O'Donnell's eyebrows were moving in strange ways on her forehead. Her mouth was agape, but it seemed very unlikely that any sound was going to come out of it. She turned to make eye contact with a few of the other children, as if checking to see that they were hearing what she was hearing. It seemed so. They were almost giddy with excitement, watching to see what would happen next, enthralled.
"I mean," Cedric's voice broke into the quiet again, everyone turning back toward him mechanically, including Mrs. O'Donnell. He waved a flippant hand in the air as he relaxed in his seat, "That's my take on it, at least."
Mrs. O'Donnell swallowed. She noticed that her breathing had become quick and that there was a musty taste in her throat, the taste, in fact, that precedes the acrid tang of bile. Then she heard her voice, speaking as if it were far away, dampened and muffled like something was covering her ears. "Cedric, I want you to go out into the hall. Right now. Do you hear me?"
He shrugged his shoulders. "Sure." He stepped out of his desk and walked through the classroom, slowly, with a confident gait - not cocky, not a strut, but like someone who knew how to walk away from a confrontation with the air that he had won.
A longer review
May 8, 2012
Writer Mark Lavorato sets several daunting challenges for himself with the ambitious Being Cedric. His title character Cedric Johnson, middle-aged insurance broker, variously estranged from family, friends and former associates, isn't particularly sympathetic - which is fine and true to life and all, but then perhaps something else might be needed to draw readers in. There are other characters with which one can establish some interest or understanding, but none of those characters are involved and sustained throughout the story.
Then there's the matter of Cedric's rather unique problem: the readers is to believe he is having physical flashbacks to key moments in his past, going back as far as childhood. He can't change the outcome of those events, but he can view and assess them in the moment with full knowledge of their impact and the presumed wisdom of age. Can this problem come to attain some symbolic heft, transcend gimmickry to achieve something more profound? Early on this strange journey, the reader might be piqued but not entirely certain.
Read my complete review here: http://bookgaga.posterous.com/believi...
Then there's the matter of Cedric's rather unique problem: the readers is to believe he is having physical flashbacks to key moments in his past, going back as far as childhood. He can't change the outcome of those events, but he can view and assess them in the moment with full knowledge of their impact and the presumed wisdom of age. Can this problem come to attain some symbolic heft, transcend gimmickry to achieve something more profound? Early on this strange journey, the reader might be piqued but not entirely certain.
Read my complete review here: http://bookgaga.posterous.com/believi...
April 9, 2013
I found the peripheral character"s stories to be of the most value in this novel, which really is a collection of short stories linked by the rather unlikely protagonist, Cedric. Cedric is not the most likeable or memorable character either: he cheats on his wife and friends, lives a hedonistic lifestyle of sunshine and golf, is overweight, unwise, and hasn't read a book in his life. And yet he touches (but does not influence) the other characters whose lives span across Canada and back. As a historic description of life in this vast country in the last half of the 20th century, this book is a very sensitive portrait.
The writing is elegant and infused with poetry, and the author's focus is like a panoramic lens, beginning at the outer edges of this collage and pulling us in to its core with each story. I sensed how the the ending would play out about midway through the book but was still pleasantly engaged when we were introduced to the secret of Cedric's time travelling powers in the last chapter.
The writing is elegant and infused with poetry, and the author's focus is like a panoramic lens, beginning at the outer edges of this collage and pulling us in to its core with each story. I sensed how the the ending would play out about midway through the book but was still pleasantly engaged when we were introduced to the secret of Cedric's time travelling powers in the last chapter.
October 25, 2015
I seem to vibrate at the same frequency as this author's books! Believing Cedric felt like falling into someone else's idle daydream by way of interwoven tales of people just living lives they have been dealt. People in no delusions about themselves, but in their acceptance of circumstance comes these connections, and willingness to be present? The present moment in each characters life is so well described in imagery, and psychological understanding, that I often had to stop reading just to feel into what had been described.
The poems that seem to center each character and set each story are good to read. Unselfconscious, and emotive. I loved how the poetry was given vehicle by the over all story itself. Just great!
The poems that seem to center each character and set each story are good to read. Unselfconscious, and emotive. I loved how the poetry was given vehicle by the over all story itself. Just great!
August 25, 2011
I loved this book and have never read anything like it! Cedric does exactly what the description says: he physically flashes back to moments, times in his life but with the mind, knowledge, life he has lived as a 58 year-old man. An incredible novelist, Mark Lavorato seamlessly brings together different stories, perspectives, histories, and, with poetry, draws us right in to each character weaving through Cedric’s life. Could be complicated...but it isn’t – it is beautiful and it is beautifully written, set in a unique and exciting format.
Must-read!
Must-read!
February 20, 2013
It is a unique take on a book of short stories. It is a collection that combines poetry and narrative before each short story. The imagery is rich throughout each story. Mark makes use of his love of poetry and his ability to create this richness of imagery. There is a tying together of all of the short stories by a character briefly present in each story. The final story is a summation of the stories having gone before. It simply is a very unique,interesting, and intriguing way to present many varied topics in short story form. It is a very enjoyable read!!
August 26, 2011
Beware this book sucks you slowly in like quicksand! Intriguing right to
the end where the final twist is well concealed and leaves you feeling an
unlikely sympathy with the main character. Have previously read Veracity
by the same author and whilst I also really enjoyed that book the quality
of writing in this book is of an altogether higher standard. The concepts
here are truly original and I look forward to his next book with eager
anticipation!
the end where the final twist is well concealed and leaves you feeling an
unlikely sympathy with the main character. Have previously read Veracity
by the same author and whilst I also really enjoyed that book the quality
of writing in this book is of an altogether higher standard. The concepts
here are truly original and I look forward to his next book with eager
anticipation!
September 26, 2011
Believing Cedric is a beautifully written story filled with amazing imagery and lovely, honest characters. The poetry is breathtaking and the complexity in which it is woven through this story is truly inspired.
August 14, 2013
Even better if you can relate to Southern Alberta and Canada. A local boy and friend of mine.
March 31, 2014
A captivating tour of the Canadian soul, in its many forms. I am really, really glad to have read this book.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews