The Visit of the Royal Physician

Read The Visit of the Royal Physician, by Per Olov Enquist (Swedish, 2000), 309pp

All about mad King Christian VII of Denmark, and the forces of the enlightenment and the counter-enlightenment which tried to manipulate his position and incapacity.

At first I wasn't so sure about it, it seemed written in a strangely repetitive manner; but after 50 pages or so I read it through very quickly, putting aside all else. The narrative drive is very strong, despite the fact that you know precisely what is going to happen, since he told you the outcome in the first line. In that respect, reminds me of Nabokov's Laughter in the Dark. I think perhaps this desire to get to the end is predicated on the fact that you don't want the outcome to happen, though knowing all along that it inevitably will.

Bruges-La-Morte

Read Bruges-La-Morte, by Georges Rodenbach (Belgian, 1892) 140pp

A strange and compelling tale, overwhelmed by a sense of gloom and death, whose gothic background is the town of Bruges, complete with pictures. Such tales of men lured from virtuous integrity by delusive obsession appeal to me. I read it in one sitting.