Horizontal Rain

by Udith H. Dematagoda

Set in Glasgow 2015. A man suddenly finds himself alone, but not for long. Soon his attention is consumed by another woman - sublime, inspired, unknowable - and different, he feels, from those who came before her. His friend, arrogant and unencumbered, taunts him as they drift aimlessly from one hangover to the next amidst a landscape of uniform grey, pulsating lights and insipid rain. Between querulous despondency and abject nihilism - an attempt to capture the disquiet of the decade just past, striking at the heart of a contagious male despair.

208 pages, Paperback

First published August 31, 2020

Reviews

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I just read this cover to cover in one sitting - in like 7 hours. I never do this anymore. Really unlike anything I've read in a long time. Laugh out fucking loud hilarious, miserable and profound. The prose is tight even when it gets experimental and meta-fiction - had some trouble following the Scottish phrase, which aren't that many - but this made it more intriguing. I lived in Glasgow for 6 month months in 2007, and the author really nails the atmosphere and vibe. At some points it has an almost dreamlike beauty and lyricism, even at its most abject. I can't really point to what it reminds me of - but there's a lot in there; Céline, Nabokov, James Kelman and maybe Hubert Shelby Jr in places.

[Keith [on semi hiatus] · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm really not sure what to make of this to be honest as I'm quite split-minded on it all; first-off, it's a four-part novel, there's interspersing mentioning of Vladimir Mayakovsky's A Cloud in Trousers, that's all well and good - it's probably one of the writer's favourites - it plays into the protagonist's character background, it doesn't really delve much deeper than that: surface level.

It's obviously a very philosophical piece, the entities of the novel - the literature mentioned through-out, the dialogue between the two male friends (the protagonist and his years-long pal), the tone in its totality, and other elements - indicate this but it doesn't seem to spread that much into his sexual affairs which gives the piece a good amount of pace and doesn't overwhelm.

The sexual affairs of (and sometimes lack-of) the protagonist throughout are absolutely beautiful, they are really well-written: romantically, erotically, emotionally, and to be quite frank the guy actually seems a some-what rounded enough character in comparison to today's bodies of society though his sometimes over-the-top depictions of suffering of anxiety almost act as a tranquillizer in the reading.

There are some scenes that really weren't called for and put me in a spiral of downward enjoyment of the piece but recovery from this was quick and the pace was restored; the sprinkling of typos throughout left a bitter taste and there was a strange experience around part four where it began to feel like it was written by someone else completely... between these faults and in balance with the aforementioned, I felt that if it went through more editing it could've been so much stronger.

[Robert · Rating 3 out of 5]

The first thing one will notice about Horizontal Rain is that it’s a masculine book. By this I do not mean a macho, testosterone fuelled, alcohol, punch up fest. Rather the book is an exploration on how the male mind works, giving both positive and negative perspectives.

The narrator is a man soon approaching his 30’s, he has a degree and works as a barman and in a film archive of sorts. The book opens with his latest partner leaving him while one of his close male acquaintances moves in. This leads to clashing viewpoints ; the friend has a more bullish approach to life that are typical to males of my generation : do not show emotion, do not reflect about one’s actions while the narrator has a slightly more sensitive view.

Things change when the narrator meets another girl and then begins to question his way of thinking. At first he wants a non-committal relationship but the relationship becomes more serious and the narrator thinks about change. Saying that he still lapses but is forgiven.

Horizontal Rain’s simple narration disguises the more complex issues at hand, namely the two worlds that the narrator is caught in between : the slovenly friend or a woman who is making him see things in a different light. Generally such books put me off but I will admit that I did like it, although I didn’t really relate to it but I did see it as an interesting on the way a male mind might work.

[Guillaume · Rating 5 out of 5]

I never read many new books in English with one or two exceptions but my friend recommended me this novel - they know the publisher. It was a very beautiful novel and there is some very delicate and rarefied prose that I found very sympathetic. It is also very funny sometimes, but very melancholic in its portrayal of fleeting youth and love. Glasgow is a very special place for me, I visited many times and I had a lot of good friends there, and I also partied and fell in love there too. It's a beautiful city and this novel reminded me of this place. There is a mood and aesthetic which reminds of Le Bleu du Ciel by George Bataille, which is one of my favourites, but maybe not in the same subject matter obviously. I recommend to everyone - this is one of the best books I have read in many years and it deserves to be read by many people. This will become a classic, I am sure. Please support this exciting new publisher.

[John Julius · Rating 5 out of 5]

Dematagoda’s a very skilled writer, with legitimate literary pretensions. He has a great ear for dialogue, can lift off on flights of inspired prose, can be experimental, but also adhere to more traditional storytelling forms and devices. He’s so skilled that at times he can almost gloss over where his storytelling falters. Where art isn’t happening, Dematagoda steps in with artistry to dazzle us.

The unnamed protagonist, a long-suffering Romantic, pickled by booze, anti-depressants and dilettantism, sleeps with and then becomes obsessed with Clara, a woman he hardly knows. The narrator second-guesses everything he does and doesn’t do in love, is impulsive when he does act, and then laments his decisions afterwards. The book is comic in this sense.

As the protagonist and his roommate Robert discuss art and the human condition—especially as they relate to horny and sensitive intellectual men—, they code-switch between the vernacular of their working class roots and the higher registers acquired in the process of getting their PhDs.

Reading Dematagoda in Horizontal Rain is like watching a very talented ballplayer. You stay to the end of the match, not because you really care how it turns out, but because of the flashes of brilliance that he reveals here and there. He’s a pleasure to watch at work. His book’s not perfect, but, as a debut novel, it merits five stars.

[Yung Yoruba · Rating 3 out of 5]

Alternative titles: 'The Sorrows of Young Fuckboy' or 'On the Perils of BPD Pussy'

Friend recommended and told me to review. Weird book, well written sometimes, kinda funny, love the Scottish accent stuff...but like damn. I ain't read something so pretentious/philosophical/self-obsessed in a long ass time. Seems archaic almost, but sorta captures a contemporary vibe. Tbh I couldn't relate to some of the romantic drama - too 'straight people problems' for me. A hate read for the hoes lmao.