How Late It Was, How Late by James Kelman

I feel quite a sense of achievement and relief in finishing my most recent read; the 1994 winner.  Partly because it was a slog reading the infamous Glaswegian vernacular (although not wholly consistent!) in its unbroken form and partly due to the grim reality that it was describing.  It wasn’t enjoyable but still worthwhile as the constant stream of consciousness meant that I was fully immersed in the mind and inner monologue of a blind, Glaswegian, ex-convict whether I wanted to or not.  It wasn’t pleasant to spend time with one’s senses so curtailed by the protagonist, Sammy’s, blindness caused by an injury sustained while in custody and also the sense of him seemingly being incapable of improving his situation.  The absence of description of visual stimuli and hence the introspection, was echoed by Sammy’s sense of isolation from having to defend himself from the hardness of his life, which was brilliantly conveyed by Kelman. 

I found the lack of kindness and compassion in his existence which had lead to mistrust of others particularly affecting, especially in his vulnerable state.  When he is approached by the character Ally, who offers to represent him in compiling a compensation claim, my first reaction was one of suspicion as I adopted Sammy’s own sense of paranoia about what is going to befall him.

The lack of chapters, paragraphs and punctuation was an interesting concept, and has made me ponder the reliance on these conventions.  In particular the lack of chapters was perhaps the most disturbing, as I realised how I depended on the chunks to form convenient breaks in proceedings to signal a return to my own narrative reality.  Conversely, I am not a fan of the overuse of the chapter either, where writers use a cliff-hanger at the end of every chapter to propel the story forward at a hectic pace.  Therefore I guess for me the best option is the judicial use of the chapter which deserves due consideration and enhances the nature of the narrative as opposed to being conspicuous in its presence (or absence).  Overall, this book, despite its tough and repulsive exterior, had a great deal to offer and was challenging in many different ways and worth persevering with (although I’m sure many people would and have debated this!).

Onwards I go with the challenge and I anticipate the 2012 winner shortly with the revealing of the shortlist earlier this month.  I can’t say I was overly excited about seeing Hilary Mantel’s sequel to Wolf Hall on the list…but otherwise I am open and interested to discover which book will be joining my list of Bookers still to read!