The origin of annoying

Leanne's choice: Nino Ricci, The Origin of Species

(Doubleday Canada, 2008)

Discussed 6 June 2008 @ Latitude (Main Street, Vancouver)

None of us had yet read anything by acclaimed Canadian author Nino Ricci, and I believe this was part of Leanne's motivation for her selection: to see what all the fuss was about. (So far, The Origin of Species has won the Governor General's Literary Award and has been shortlisted for the Trillium Prize.) But it seems that Ricci won't be winning any prizes from my book club.

We were all agreed that Ricci's writing was masterful. I personally found his prose much more sophisticated than that found in The Outlander, but Nicole reminded me that Ricci's subject matter affords much more "scope for the imagination" (these are Anne of Green Gables's words, not Nicole's). We were also all agreed that this one is not an urgent page-turner, excepting Alex's visit to the Galapagos Islands - a riveting episode.

The fact that The Origin of Species didn't have me on the edge of my seat did not deter me in the least (although it apparently deterred Jennifer, who for the first time didn't even finish the book. Tsk tsk). I was increasingly engrossed as Alex's back story unfolded, and truly awed by the way Ricci was able to draw tantalizing, but subtle, connections between ideas as diverse as evolutionary theory, agnosticism, ethnic and cultural identity, and (yes) love. I wish I could explain with more precision, but Ricci never lays out the connections for you, which I think is a strength of the novel. It's the kind of book that could use a companion university lecture.

While I was very enthusiastic, my fellow readers were more... irritated. Their appreciation for the novel's technical merits was dampened by their annoyance with Alex Fratercangeli, the protagonist (it would be too generous to use the term "hero"). Alex is insecure, neurotic, self-deprecating, and self-absorbed, and in many ways the story is simply about him trying to deal with his personal baggage. Doesn't exactly make one drop everything and run to the bookstore.  Admittedly, Alex is... flawed. But I found him to be a soul struggling to do the right thing in a world where he is surrounded by assholes. While we view his decisions through the filter of his own self-loathing, most (if not all) of his actions are humane. This was not enough to keep everyone invested in the story; both Nicole and Leanne, apparently, finished it out of a sense of (noble) book-club obligation.

Incidentally, we very much enjoyed the new restaurant Latitude. I loved the chickpea fries (great for an empty stomach), and a few of us ordered the delicious paella in tribute to Alex's dinner date fiasco. 

Stars (out of five):

Kerry-Lynn: 3.5

Nicole: 3

Leanne: 3

Jennifer: 2

Amanda: 4