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Headhunter
It doesn't take long to discover the literary classic at the heart of Timothy Findley's dystopian novel Headhunter. Lilah Kemp, schizophrenic and one of a triumvirate of main characters, announces in the opening scene that she may have released the character of Kurtz from the pages of Joseph Conrad's novel Heart of Darkness. Add to this fantastic formula a couple of psychiatrists named Charles Marlow and Rupert Kurtz and a huge cast of secondary players set in a futuristic pollution- and plague-ravaged Toronto, and you are left with a bizarre reinterpretation of not just one of the classics of literature, but the age-old tale of power and corruption itself. Conrad did not invent this story, Findley shrewdly points out; he just gave it a name: Kurtz.
This is vintage Findley, who similarly re-imagined the Old Testament story of Noah and the Flood in Not Wanted on the Voyage. Headhunter is another example of Findley's ability to blend morality and entertainment. Findley's willingness to blend literature and pulp is Headhunter's greatest asset. You can get lost in the rollicking good fun of the sci-fi dystopia or you can dredge its depths for literary clues. Or you can do both. Either way, Headhunter lives up to both its best-seller and literary status. --Jonathan Dewar
575 pages
First published January 1, 1993
24 people are currently reading
1415 people want to read
About the author
Timothy Findley
57 books356 followersTimothy Irving Frederick Findley was a Canadian novelist and playwright. He was also informally known by the nickname Tiff or Tiffy, an acronym of his initials.
One of three sons, Findley was born in Toronto, Ontario, to Allan Gilmour Findley, a stockbroker, and his wife, the former Margaret Maude Bull. His paternal grandfather was president of Massey-Harris, the farm-machinery company. He was raised in the upper class Rosedale district of the city, attending boarding school at St. Andrew's College (although leaving during grade 10 for health reasons). He pursued a career in the arts, studying dance and acting, and had significant success as an actor before turning to writing. He was part of the original Stratford Festival company in the 1950s, acting alongside Alec Guinness, and appeared in the first production of Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker at the Edinburgh Festival. He also played Peter Pupkin in Sunshine Sketches, the CBC Television adaptation of Stephen Leacock's Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town.
Though Findley had declared his homosexuality as a teenager, he married actress/photographer Janet Reid in 1959, but the union lasted only three months and was dissolved by divorce or annulment two years later. Eventually he became the domestic partner of writer Bill Whitehead, whom he met in 1962. Findley and Whitehead also collaborated on several documentary projects in the 1970s, including the television miniseries The National Dream and Dieppe 1942.
Through Wilder, Findley became a close friend of actress Ruth Gordon, whose work as a screenwriter and playwright inspired Findley to consider writing as well. After Findley published his first short story in the Tamarack Review, Gordon encouraged him to pursue writing more actively, and he eventually left acting in the 1960s.
Findley's first two novels, The Last of the Crazy People (1967) and The Butterfly Plague (1969), were originally published in Britain and the United States after having been rejected by Canadian publishers. Findley's third novel, The Wars, was published to great acclaim in 1977 and went on to win the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction. It was adapted for film in 1981.
Timothy Findley received a Governor General's Award, the Canadian Authors Association Award, an ACTRA Award, the Order of Ontario, the Ontario Trillium Award, and in 1985 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. He was a founding member and chair of the Writers' Union of Canada, and a president of the Canadian chapter of PEN International.
His writing was typical of the Southern Ontario Gothic style — Findley, in fact, first invented its name — and was heavily influenced by Jungian psychology. Mental illness, gender and sexuality were frequent recurring themes in his work. His characters often carried dark personal secrets, and were often conflicted — sometimes to the point of psychosis — by these burdens.
He publicly mentioned his homosexuality, passingly and perhaps for the first time, on a broadcast of the programme The Shulman File in the 1970s, taking flabbergasted host Morton Shulman completely by surprise.
Findley and Whitehead resided at Stone Orchard, a farm near Cannington, Ontario, and in the south of France. In 1996, Findley was honoured by the French government, who declared him a Chevalier de l'Ordre des arts et des lettres.
Findley was also the author of several dramas for television and stage. Elizabeth Rex, his most successful play, premiered at the Stratford Festival of Canada to rave reviews and won a Governor General's award. His 1993 play The Stillborn Lover was adapted by Shaftesbury Films into the television film External Affairs, which aired on CBC Television in 1999. Shadows, first performed in 2001, was his last completed work. Findley was also an active mentor to a number of young Canadian writers, including Marnie Woodrow and Elizabeth Ruth.
One of three sons, Findley was born in Toronto, Ontario, to Allan Gilmour Findley, a stockbroker, and his wife, the former Margaret Maude Bull. His paternal grandfather was president of Massey-Harris, the farm-machinery company. He was raised in the upper class Rosedale district of the city, attending boarding school at St. Andrew's College (although leaving during grade 10 for health reasons). He pursued a career in the arts, studying dance and acting, and had significant success as an actor before turning to writing. He was part of the original Stratford Festival company in the 1950s, acting alongside Alec Guinness, and appeared in the first production of Thornton Wilder's The Matchmaker at the Edinburgh Festival. He also played Peter Pupkin in Sunshine Sketches, the CBC Television adaptation of Stephen Leacock's Sunshine Sketches of a Little Town.
Though Findley had declared his homosexuality as a teenager, he married actress/photographer Janet Reid in 1959, but the union lasted only three months and was dissolved by divorce or annulment two years later. Eventually he became the domestic partner of writer Bill Whitehead, whom he met in 1962. Findley and Whitehead also collaborated on several documentary projects in the 1970s, including the television miniseries The National Dream and Dieppe 1942.
Through Wilder, Findley became a close friend of actress Ruth Gordon, whose work as a screenwriter and playwright inspired Findley to consider writing as well. After Findley published his first short story in the Tamarack Review, Gordon encouraged him to pursue writing more actively, and he eventually left acting in the 1960s.
Findley's first two novels, The Last of the Crazy People (1967) and The Butterfly Plague (1969), were originally published in Britain and the United States after having been rejected by Canadian publishers. Findley's third novel, The Wars, was published to great acclaim in 1977 and went on to win the Governor General's Award for English-language fiction. It was adapted for film in 1981.
Timothy Findley received a Governor General's Award, the Canadian Authors Association Award, an ACTRA Award, the Order of Ontario, the Ontario Trillium Award, and in 1985 he was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada. He was a founding member and chair of the Writers' Union of Canada, and a president of the Canadian chapter of PEN International.
His writing was typical of the Southern Ontario Gothic style — Findley, in fact, first invented its name — and was heavily influenced by Jungian psychology. Mental illness, gender and sexuality were frequent recurring themes in his work. His characters often carried dark personal secrets, and were often conflicted — sometimes to the point of psychosis — by these burdens.
He publicly mentioned his homosexuality, passingly and perhaps for the first time, on a broadcast of the programme The Shulman File in the 1970s, taking flabbergasted host Morton Shulman completely by surprise.
Findley and Whitehead resided at Stone Orchard, a farm near Cannington, Ontario, and in the south of France. In 1996, Findley was honoured by the French government, who declared him a Chevalier de l'Ordre des arts et des lettres.
Findley was also the author of several dramas for television and stage. Elizabeth Rex, his most successful play, premiered at the Stratford Festival of Canada to rave reviews and won a Governor General's award. His 1993 play The Stillborn Lover was adapted by Shaftesbury Films into the television film External Affairs, which aired on CBC Television in 1999. Shadows, first performed in 2001, was his last completed work. Findley was also an active mentor to a number of young Canadian writers, including Marnie Woodrow and Elizabeth Ruth.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews
May 19, 2014
Headhunter is not a book to read if you want the word "settled" to enter your vocabulary any time in the near future. It is perhaps as unsettling a book as I am willing to read, and yet, I've read it three or four times now. It keeps drawing me back, for all its horror.
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
Note: The rest of this review has been withdrawn due to the changes in Goodreads policy and enforcement. You can read why I came to this decision here.
In the meantime, you can read the entire review at Smorgasbook
November 6, 2011
This book hurt my head and my heart and turned my stomach - I guess that`s an appropriate response to a tale of the evil that lurks in the heart of men (and women, but here mostly men).
Headhunter is an inventive and possibly even brilliant re-telling of Heart of Darkness, set in Toronto at the Parkin Institute -- a thinly-veiled Clarke Institute of Psychiatry -- with Kurtz (yes, really) re-cast as the Parkin`s head psychiatrist, who has gone wayyyyyy up the river and over the edge into madness himself if not pure evil, and Marlow (yup) his alter ego, a fellow psychiatrist who functions as rational observer-saviour-hero. Look for all the dark-light symbolism that surrounds these two; perhaps a bit heavy-handed, but no less effective for it.
The dystopian city and society Findley portrays - from its government cover-up and mass-scale extermination of starlings claimed to be causing the plague afflicting the city; to its raw portrayal of child pornography, incest and paedophilia (and those who are drawn to it, and why; we get a real insider`s look here) set amid the moneyed-artsy class of Toronto - has left me feeling unsettled and slightly nauseated.
Findley is a fabulous writer, and probably not read as widely as he should be. His books tend to sprawl, and be about everything at once - they have huge scope. This one was in danger of heading off in too many directions, but he`s such a good story-teller, you forgive him what might be some of his excesses.
Lilah is a wonderful, heart-rending and sympathetic character. You just want to take her in your arms and comfort her, tell her everything is going to be alright. You`d be lying, of course, but this book explores THAT as much as anything (and everything) else: that part of the human heart, the lightness, the capacity to love, and to have hope set against the opposite: the dark corruption, manipulation and brutality.
Even through the horror (the horror), it kept me reading - fascinated by the characters, swept up in the breadth of Findley`s vision and the sheer inventiveness of it - but also, unable to look away, even though so much of this was truly appalling to think about.
Equal parts dystopian social commentary, murder mystery and ghost story, at its heart (yes, I did just go there), it`s an exploration of the human capacity for evil.
Plus, there`s some snide satire of the obnoxious Rosedale plastic-surgery loving elite (the Torontonians in the crowd will love this - unless you live in Rosedale, I guess), and a great, heroic dog named Grendel.
Lots to love.
Headhunter is an inventive and possibly even brilliant re-telling of Heart of Darkness, set in Toronto at the Parkin Institute -- a thinly-veiled Clarke Institute of Psychiatry -- with Kurtz (yes, really) re-cast as the Parkin`s head psychiatrist, who has gone wayyyyyy up the river and over the edge into madness himself if not pure evil, and Marlow (yup) his alter ego, a fellow psychiatrist who functions as rational observer-saviour-hero. Look for all the dark-light symbolism that surrounds these two; perhaps a bit heavy-handed, but no less effective for it.
The dystopian city and society Findley portrays - from its government cover-up and mass-scale extermination of starlings claimed to be causing the plague afflicting the city; to its raw portrayal of child pornography, incest and paedophilia (and those who are drawn to it, and why; we get a real insider`s look here) set amid the moneyed-artsy class of Toronto - has left me feeling unsettled and slightly nauseated.
Findley is a fabulous writer, and probably not read as widely as he should be. His books tend to sprawl, and be about everything at once - they have huge scope. This one was in danger of heading off in too many directions, but he`s such a good story-teller, you forgive him what might be some of his excesses.
Lilah is a wonderful, heart-rending and sympathetic character. You just want to take her in your arms and comfort her, tell her everything is going to be alright. You`d be lying, of course, but this book explores THAT as much as anything (and everything) else: that part of the human heart, the lightness, the capacity to love, and to have hope set against the opposite: the dark corruption, manipulation and brutality.
Even through the horror (the horror), it kept me reading - fascinated by the characters, swept up in the breadth of Findley`s vision and the sheer inventiveness of it - but also, unable to look away, even though so much of this was truly appalling to think about.
Equal parts dystopian social commentary, murder mystery and ghost story, at its heart (yes, I did just go there), it`s an exploration of the human capacity for evil.
Plus, there`s some snide satire of the obnoxious Rosedale plastic-surgery loving elite (the Torontonians in the crowd will love this - unless you live in Rosedale, I guess), and a great, heroic dog named Grendel.
Lots to love.
March 12, 2008
Definitely not recommended to my students. But my favourite of his books. Is that a terrible thing to say? It's kind of a terrible book. I mean, given its topic. But it is so well written that I couldn't help admiring it. For which I feel guilty. How does he get into the heads of those kinds of people?? And he makes the reader go there too!! yoikes! But yet you want to. Clearly, a master writer.
August 14, 2019
so so behind on my goodreads argh ---- this book made me feel like i used to feel when i read. twisted, complex, rich, engaging, and i loved loved seeing all the familiar streets of my city.
September 26, 2011
This was a rather disturbing, somewhat incongruous, at times hard to follow journey through the lives of many people. The book was okay, the material covered was reasonably portrayed but rather disturbing, but all in all it did not engage me or keep me on the edge of my seat. I had been recommended this book by someone who said that Timothy Findley is a similar author to Robertson Davies... I failed to feel the connection. Perhaps if I were to read some other books by Findley I might see the similarities but for now this book has turned me off of reading any additional Findley for a while.
October 5, 2022
Read the first half. Wasn't enjoying it. Didn't finish.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 5, 2014
“Headhunter,” is placed somewhere in the near future. Too close for comfort, I would say as this social dystopian novel looks at two elements; 1. species extinction as hallmarks for environmental collapse almost as closely as it examines the background behind 2. child pornography. (It asks the questions we find hard to ask as a community – what is the difference between deliberate apathy and obedience by likening the turning of a blind eye towards the bird pandemic and when society ignored the first signposts of AIDS.) These two elements are the axis of ‘evils,’ that collude and conspire within this Torontonian futuristic setting. Kurtz and Marlowe are brought forward from the, ‘Heart of Darkness,' to play their roles of evil vs. good. Birds and children symbolize innocence and in a sense, Findley is commenting on the loss of innocence. Secondary characters reveal added dimensions to the overall plot by pushing at the boundaries of madness, which beg questions. When does madness become evil?
I am not a fan of early ‘reveal,’ of the nemesis or antagonist as it surely predicts the necessity of doing away with this character in some manner.
Still Findley’s writing is one that commands attention and places it within a 360 degree arena/stage, where detail is perfectly wrought and balanced with succinctness. Now that I have discovered what Findley’s elusive style of writing was, I can bump up my previous ratings of his works with greater confidence. What a perfect balanced writing style Findley had and what a loss to Canadian culture. I have finally encountered Timothy Findley’s writing and I am looking forward to reading more of his works. 4.5
I am not a fan of early ‘reveal,’ of the nemesis or antagonist as it surely predicts the necessity of doing away with this character in some manner.
Still Findley’s writing is one that commands attention and places it within a 360 degree arena/stage, where detail is perfectly wrought and balanced with succinctness. Now that I have discovered what Findley’s elusive style of writing was, I can bump up my previous ratings of his works with greater confidence. What a perfect balanced writing style Findley had and what a loss to Canadian culture. I have finally encountered Timothy Findley’s writing and I am looking forward to reading more of his works. 4.5
November 16, 2008
Of the three Findlay books I read, this was the least interesting to me. I didn't find that the narrator held together, nor were any of the characters developed enough for me to care. Certainly not the way I did with Not Wanted on the Voyage or even Famous Last Words.
March 27, 2022
"Adults do not make demands of others - they make demands of themselves"
It's three stars if you're from Toronto, given that the book is very consciously set in the city, almost, at points, seemingly pandering to Toronto readers. Otherwise, it's sometimes-interesting, sometimes-humorous exploration of differing approaches to psychiatry, of sanity and madness, of (male) sexuality, and of Upper Canadian elitism.
By far the worst thing about the book is the half-hearted attempt at a dystopic backdrop. It's like Findley had the idea, for no apparent reason, to set the novel in a dystopian future, but then decided to put virtually no effort into building out that world. Or maybe he simply lacked the ability to do so - he's not a sci-fi writer after all.
In sum, definitely not worth the effort and time of 500 pages. For me, it was a birthday gift, and that, plus the 90s-Toronto setting, motivated (obligated?) me to get through it. Otherwise I would have put it down in the first 100 pages.
It's three stars if you're from Toronto, given that the book is very consciously set in the city, almost, at points, seemingly pandering to Toronto readers. Otherwise, it's sometimes-interesting, sometimes-humorous exploration of differing approaches to psychiatry, of sanity and madness, of (male) sexuality, and of Upper Canadian elitism.
By far the worst thing about the book is the half-hearted attempt at a dystopic backdrop. It's like Findley had the idea, for no apparent reason, to set the novel in a dystopian future, but then decided to put virtually no effort into building out that world. Or maybe he simply lacked the ability to do so - he's not a sci-fi writer after all.
In sum, definitely not worth the effort and time of 500 pages. For me, it was a birthday gift, and that, plus the 90s-Toronto setting, motivated (obligated?) me to get through it. Otherwise I would have put it down in the first 100 pages.
July 26, 2018
Couldn't get past the premise of this which drove me crazy.
January 23, 2011
Findlay is brilliant, but this wasn't one of my faves of his. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it. The parallels between this book and Heart of Darkness were fascinating. The discussion of 'madness' was interesting as well. The part I struggled with was the extremely disturbing sexual behaviours of some of the characters. I realize that to explore a theme of 'sex as power' these character's behaviours were necessary to the book, but it was just too edgy for me in some places.I found the ending to be a bit weak. Anti-climactic almost. I think that is because I wanted punishment and there wasn't any. Or at least one that I felt was suitable to the crimes committed.Still... some brilliant reflections and passages, and fodder for some deep social discussion.
March 19, 2007
Ok, so it's wierd and pretty graphic...I still loved it! Set at CAMH in Toronto, future where the birds are all killed to save us from disease, following a new pair of Marlow and Kurtz facing off as they always do (ref: Heart of Darkness)
April 9, 2008
A good book but most disturbing and depressive. Don't read it in winter when it is too dark if you live far from the tropics! and also don't read it in Vancouver or anywhere close to the wet west coast!
August 6, 2007
Headhunter is fantastic. It is a story that takes you deep into our heart of darkness. This is a must-read for any fan of the author.
August 30, 2013
This book is a reread for me. I have been reading a lot of short fiction lately and want to sink into a long novel written by a Canadian.
July 27, 2019
3.5-4 stars.
What did I just read?
For years, in high school I was told this was a classic to read for its symbolism and because it’s a Canadian author living in Toronto, the story based in Toronto etc. and now 20 years after high school I’ve finally read it.
Wow. There is a lot of disgusting parts, with pedophilia and abuse of many kinds, but not in overt detail thank god. With that said, the whole story is based on shocking the reader. Power over anything else is the basis of this story. At least that’s what I’ve taken from it. Also, perhaps the powerful, rich, “geniuses” of the world are more “insane and crazy” thank what we consider someone with a very debilitating mental illness. It’s a gross stomach churning feeling when you realize the top most powerful people are the ones “helping” the helpless or deemed insane, when the irony is that the most powerful people are more insane, more dangerous and disgusting than anyone else who is considered crazy.
What makes a person go crazy?
What makes a person tick?
Why are humans so addicted to desires that are disgusting; compared to any other living creature?
Why do we confine people with imagination and harmless curiosity beyond our comprehension yet accept and next question powerful authority figures?
Are they always so pristine?
I really liked Marlow, and watching him come undone in a way was very interesting.
I liked all the characters used as the “crazy” ones. I hate using that term but that’s how they’re supposed to be seen initially.
The “normal” people are the scary ones. Control, power, desire, selfishness.
I guess this book could be discussed at many angles; this is mine, but I could probably see differently as I reflect on this book for some time.
Would recommend to anyone who enjoys stories about power, whether it’s good or bad, and the repercussions that come from it all when power is in the wrong hands. It reminded me in a way of Atlas Shrugged, only in the sense that it’s all power and the realizing there’s more outside that.
What did I just read?
For years, in high school I was told this was a classic to read for its symbolism and because it’s a Canadian author living in Toronto, the story based in Toronto etc. and now 20 years after high school I’ve finally read it.
Wow. There is a lot of disgusting parts, with pedophilia and abuse of many kinds, but not in overt detail thank god. With that said, the whole story is based on shocking the reader. Power over anything else is the basis of this story. At least that’s what I’ve taken from it. Also, perhaps the powerful, rich, “geniuses” of the world are more “insane and crazy” thank what we consider someone with a very debilitating mental illness. It’s a gross stomach churning feeling when you realize the top most powerful people are the ones “helping” the helpless or deemed insane, when the irony is that the most powerful people are more insane, more dangerous and disgusting than anyone else who is considered crazy.
What makes a person go crazy?
What makes a person tick?
Why are humans so addicted to desires that are disgusting; compared to any other living creature?
Why do we confine people with imagination and harmless curiosity beyond our comprehension yet accept and next question powerful authority figures?
Are they always so pristine?
I really liked Marlow, and watching him come undone in a way was very interesting.
I liked all the characters used as the “crazy” ones. I hate using that term but that’s how they’re supposed to be seen initially.
The “normal” people are the scary ones. Control, power, desire, selfishness.
I guess this book could be discussed at many angles; this is mine, but I could probably see differently as I reflect on this book for some time.
Would recommend to anyone who enjoys stories about power, whether it’s good or bad, and the repercussions that come from it all when power is in the wrong hands. It reminded me in a way of Atlas Shrugged, only in the sense that it’s all power and the realizing there’s more outside that.
January 26, 2021
I wanted to like this so much. Timothy Findley's writing style is dreamy and flows like water...and the core story of Lilah Kemp had me fascinated. Were her powers real, or were they an manifestation of her mental illness? A concise story about her travails would have hit the spot. Unfortunately, this novel surrounds that core story with what feels like a cast of thousands, and a bloated attempt to create an intricate spider web of connections that simply implodes upon itself, resulting in my eyes glazing over with boredom whenever the book strayed from Lilah's story. Even Lilah succumbs to this web of connections somewhere around page 300; the end result is a giant miasma of characters that end up doing nothing for me, and certainly does the novel no favours at all. I was incredibly disappointed.
February 26, 2020
Dans les pas de Conrad, une exploration du mal... pas complètement aboutie. Deux pans de l’histoire entrent en contradiction. La description de la bonne société canadienne et ses histoires de famille - qui rapproche ce livre de La Fille de l’homme au piano - cohabite étrangement avec ce qui se veut une analyse du mal - complotisme, pédophilie, meurtres. Findley propose une version pas tout à fait convaincante car caricaturale de ce qui serait le mal absolu. Malgré tout à lire pour la capacité de Findley à créer ses personnages, pour les allusions littéraires et pour une dénonciation, presque anticipatrice, des maux du XXIe s
Read
July 7, 2021It crescendoes at the end. It all comes together. When you think Marlow is the hero it's really the bag lady with the baby carriage. She is orchestrating the entire thing, and she reads the page that tell the fate of the one who is to blame. Marlow cleans up the mess of the released Kuntz.
It took a long time to read this book. It's full of references to other books and characters. It's more of a salute than bravado at throwing them all into his novel. His mind is really something to marvel. It's dark and twisted but he has such an appreciation for human kindness and personal growth, albeit in the face of horror.
It took a long time to read this book. It's full of references to other books and characters. It's more of a salute than bravado at throwing them all into his novel. His mind is really something to marvel. It's dark and twisted but he has such an appreciation for human kindness and personal growth, albeit in the face of horror.
Read
March 2, 2022I almost gave up reading this because there were so many characters in the book, and I was having a hard time remembering who they were when they reappeared. I restarted it, though keeping an index of characters. That helped a lot.
Findley is an amazingly imaginative writer. Yes, there were many evil, selfish, overly ambitious characters, but a few good heroic ones as well. Being well educated and wealthy does not guarantee moral probity. But loved Lilah, who was schizophrenic, the animals in the story, Drs. Marlow and Purvis and others.
Findley is an amazingly imaginative writer. Yes, there were many evil, selfish, overly ambitious characters, but a few good heroic ones as well. Being well educated and wealthy does not guarantee moral probity. But loved Lilah, who was schizophrenic, the animals in the story, Drs. Marlow and Purvis and others.
September 4, 2025
Do people still read Timothy Findley? They really should. I’ve just finished re-reading his 600 page doorstop Headhunter, in which a Toronto reeling from both a plague associated with birds and an upsurge in traumatized children finds itself peopled by figures from other books—most prominently Kurtz and Marlow from Heart of Darkness—who may have been released from their originals by a mystic ex-librarian named Lilah. It’s sprawling and unsettling and beautifully crafted and bizarre. And in some ways still timely.
May 16, 2017
Was it more of an etude or variation? I still don't know. You see, I have not read yet "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad. It's next on my list to read. From the beginning I have enjoyed the idea of taking characters from different literary works and mixing them together in different times and environment, but putting it all in the environment of mental health institution made the whole concept irresistible to me. It was a pure joy to read this book!
May 23, 2022
“ If I was to propose a text for the twentieth century, it would be Joseph Conrad’s Heart of Darkness. As subtext, I would nominate Mary Shelley’s Frankenstein. Nothing better illustrates than these two books the consequence of human ambition. On reading them again, I fell away from my complacent view that nothing could be done to stop us, and took up my current view that the human race has found its destiny in self-destruction. “
“ Where had reason gone - and humankind- humanity?”
“ Where had reason gone - and humankind- humanity?”
December 4, 2021
There is enough evocative writing to fill two books, but there is also darkness ... depravity. And confusion—enough of that to exhaust. Combine the darkness and confusion with reading a tangible book, and I just couldn't be bothered to page around for context. So I am left with mostly a sense of the heart of darkness.
June 24, 2020
another bizarre read from Findley about the power of evil and psychiatry. Not for the faint hearted, in fact one of the toughest books to get through due to subject matter and I dont say this lightly.
February 21, 2024
This book really gets in your head. You're never quite sure what is real, what you can trust or anything. It perfectly, and frighteningly, paints the psychiatrist/patient relationship and blurs all lines.
August 7, 2025
Very close to 5 stars: just falls short for me. Interesting premise and story well told, it just lacked in the through line a bit. There were so many balls in the air that there were one or two too many -- in other words it might have been a little too showy and therefore lacking in tension.
February 24, 2018
And now I have to re-read Heart of Darkness. You need to dig in a bit, but worth it.
July 15, 2019
Thought it was an original and clever story idea. Even though it is dated to the 90's the ideas and themes still seem relevant today. Great read from a smart Canadian author.
September 30, 2019
Layered, insightful, disturbing, and surprisingly effective take on a classic story of good vs. evil.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 79 reviews