The Nice and the Good

Rating:
Summary: Brilliant.
Review: I will do by best to convey in words how wonderful is this novel. This is the first work by Iris Murdoch that I have read, and I am fascinated. Her style of writing flows simply and beautifully, like a slow, undulating melody that one never wants to end. I became completely absorbed in the characters and the plot, with its unexpected twists and complex layerings of character relationships. Her character descriptions sometimes border on psychological analyses, but they are not boring nor are they misplaced. In short, I REALLY liked it.

Rating:
Summary: An Exploration of Self-Myths
Review: Murdoch explores how people's actions are driven by their self-images and personal mythologies. The vanities, fears or ambitions that dominate the way our lives unfold vary all over the place - from the need of the protagonist to "think well of himself," to the craving for love, the desire to serve humbly, or the need to forget something awful. Murdoch lets these motivations play out through her plots, which are really extravagant thought experiments. She focuses in particular on our secrets, the various reasons we have for hiding them, and the ways in which we slip into self indulgence and self-justification.

Some may find this approach a bit artificial and intellectual, but I felt that although the situations might be somewhat contrived, the character's responses and actions rang true. I found the book very readable, and it met my main criterion for a novel - it taught me something new about why people act the way they do.

Rating:
Summary: Over-rated
Review: This is my first (and possibly last) Iris Murdoch novel. Although I'm not a fan of the mystery genre, I was looking forward to reading it. The central plot involving the suicide or possible murder of a civil servant involved in black magic is surpisingly uninteresting, the pace plodding and the 'revelation' predictable. The periphary characters are heavy-handed from the all too free-spirited civil servant couple to the all too anguished Dachau survivor. The only sub-plot of interest involves an adolescent crush which also gives the book its rare suspense. The coincidentals of the plot are absurd to the point of being Dickensian and the story ties up altogether too neatly (and happily) although I did enjoy the final irony of the love-sick teenagers. I'll stick to Cormac McCarthy for my debate on good, evil and the nature of man