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The Night Inspector |
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T he Night Inspector byFrederick Busch Random House Canada (Ballantine Books) 304 pages, May 2000 ISBN 0449006158 Reviewed by Morgan Ann Adams The Night Inspector is written in the haunting style of Joseph Conrad with the complexity of modern social thought. Busch uses an intricate literary style, melding the life of veteran William Bartholomew with his memories as a soldier during the United States Civil War. Bartholomew is on an uncommon search for realization. The book centers around his internal turmoil and late coming of age. Severely disfigured while working as a sniper, Bartholomew finds himself regularly in deep discussion with a customs night inspector (referred to only as M. but obviously Herman Melville) who had already produced a literary classic although his writing was little known at the time. Bartholomew focuses on discussing M.'s work The Whale (later published as Moby Dick), though it is quickly evident that Bartholomew is as confused with his identity and purpose as the characters of the novel he adores. The Night Inspector brings to life an author and a work that are alternately exalted and feared in modern education. Busch's themes are well explored through this novel, as well as through Bartholomew and Melville. Set in a time of national identity crises, the Reconstruction period of the United States, modern issues of culture and society are easily placed and investigated. This is a novel of careful, yet subtle detail. The author’s amazing ability to write in the style of the setting (late nineteenth century American literature) propels the reader into the time and place. One feels with great intensity the horror and distraction that is Bartholomew's life. At times this distraction is contagious, as the style is so different from many modern novels. The Night Inspector is intended for a lover of words and a connoisseur of emotions. |
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