Leonard and Hungry Paul: A Novel

Product Information

Hungry Paul is still living with his parents and only works on occasions, leaving him dependent on his retired parents much to the chagrin of his sister Grace who is much more independent and successful and also about to be married.

A strange choice of main character, you may think, and you’d be right: this is very much a two-hander, and without the low-key dynamism of Leonard as a counterbalance, Hungry Paul’s story would go nowhere. But it appeared on so many “Best of 2019” lists from both GR friends and journalists that I thought I had to give it a go.But, by disallowing a story of scandalous intrigue, what I think Hession captures so beautifully and poignantly is the more realistic pulse and rhythm of life. The two friends are intrepid heroes of the mundane, a twenty-first century Don Quixote and Sancho Panza, albeit without the epic journeys and the touches of insanity.

My name is Claire, and I’m an early-career editor, UCL MA Publishing class of 16/17, an avid reader and a compulsive opinion-haver. Although Leonard feels lonely after the death of his mother, Hungry Paul’s family are there to ensure he isn’t alone. He’s a bit of solitary soul (to say loner wouldn’t be fair to him, as he’s not anti-social per se, he simply lacks the need for company).These might seem like small events for most people, but for the two friends, they are significant, and this sets in motion a momentous few weeks in their otherwise quiet lives. Kalıplar, etiketler, kurumların ötesinde düşünmek; hayata geç de olsa bir yerinden ve bir biçimde tutunmak, kendi kabuğumuzun içinde iyi hissetmenin yollarını bulmak üzerine pek zarif bir roman bu.

This voice comes in at moments when the stillness—of death, of rejection, of nothing at all—takes over. Leonard and Hungry Paul is surprisingly engaging, and also filled with wonderfully humorous scenes, mostly involving Hungry Paul. It's about quiet, finding one's path, knowing one's mind and going on, rather than doing little things and telling all the world all about them as loudly as possible. The story is so slow because people relentlessly speak in whole sentences and, toward the end, they seem to recite the kind of stuff you learn after years of psychotherapy or awareness work and meditation. Because both of these men are happy with their lives just the way they are, and how many of us can say that?

Birbirinizi yeniden bulmanız gerekecek -işte işin sırrı- eskiyi canlandırmaya çalışmak yerine ilişkinizi ve kendinizi yeniden oluşturmanız gerekecek.