Not Art by Péter Esterházy, Judith Sollosy
2010; University of Oklahoma; Volume: 84; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês
10.1353/wlt.2010.0128
ISSN1945-8134
Autores Tópico(s)Hungarian Social, Economic and Educational Studies
Resumobrought home by a chapter devoted to Gabriel's dreams. References may not be private, but they are all per sonal, and the sense that Gabriel makes of theworld is a rehearsal of his own identity,nominally on dis play for Nina, should she ever read his responses to her postcards, but also seemingly shared by Nina, as evidenced inher final letter. In the end, Ciaran Carson's prose works collectively reveal a mind at work, a mind that iswell worth attending to as it begins to make sense of the late twentiethand early twenty-first centuries. Richard M. Henry SUNY Potsdam P?ter Esterh?zy.Not Art. JudithSol losy,tr.New York. Ecco/HarperCollins. 2010. viii+ 225 pages. $19.50. isbn 978 0-06-179296-0 Early in his new novel, Not Art, the always surprising and some times exasperating P?ter Esterh?zy remarks: "I haven't gotmuch of an imagination." In a sense that's quite true.All of Esterh?zy's many books are in one way or another auto biographical and revolve around his family.True, his is a rather special family?historical, aristocratic, cel ebrated, reviled, fabulouslywealthy and then dirt poor. One has the feeling, though, thathe is the kind of writer who, even without the cachet ofan exalted pedigree, would be drawn to one inexhaustible sub ject?family life, his own. And it goes without saying thathis suppos edly down-to-earth books are fullof flightsof fancy. InNot Art he has his mother become an undying soccer fan and sportsmaven, who one day encounters a group of boys playing in an open field in the outskirts of the city, though notwith a real soc cer ball but one stuffedwith their sisters' old stockings,which has now gone too limp. The irresistible and irrepressible mother, a well-bred lady otherwise, orders the boys to turnaway, hitches up her skirt,rolls down her stockings,and hands them toone of theboys so they canmake their rag ball firmer.The boys are none other than the future soccer greats ofHungary, with theirleader, Ferenc Pusk?s, who would become a legend in his own time all over theworld except inAmerica, where soccer is stillnot king. There is no question that it takes imagination to come up with a scene like that. Indeed, Esterhazy's imagination is at work throughout.He extends the lifeofhismother by about thirty years and bestows on her thegreat est gift he can?his own endless love of the game of soccer.We see her here as a cranky old woman who somehow hasn't lost her wit and charm. Amazingly, the more the author invents and distorts and exaggerates, the more convincing his anecdotes and longmonologues and confessions and "arias" become. F. F .. .. ....... . ...... .... ... ... ... .... .. ..... ..... . ..... ..... .... . ..... . -A .. ........ . . ..... .... -'I.R. Rn Kim P i . ........... C .. . ... ..... ..... ..... ... ...... . 4,5. On A, .... ..... ....... ... 413. Ar, . ..... . . . . . P o I WORLD LITERATURE IN REVIEW ^^^^H^^^HI^HHI I Perhaps it's because formative expe riences, no matter what strange forms theymay appear in,mostly ring true. Esterh?zy also seems to be suggesting that you can't really plumb the depths of early attach ments and early traumas?there is always more there. He examines his relationship with parents, relatives, soccer players, and coaches from every possible angle. The intricate text can be excessively self-referen tialand private, oftenannoyingly so, but it is redeemed each timeby the author's sharp but forgiving sense of humor. A word about the translation. JudithSollosy, who translatedmost of Esterh?zy's works, has in fact become his English voice. And what a hip and exuberant voice it is, a decidedly American voice, richly colloquial, partial to earthy idioms. Sollosy does take chances, some times producing literal translations of colorfulHungarian idioms. Some of these verbal oddities miss the mark, but they are amusing anyway. Not Art is of course all art. But the largesse and empathy of a great writer shine through every page. Ivan Sanders Columbia University Rosario Ferr?. Lazos de sangre. Dorai, Florida. Alfaguara / Santillana USA. 2009. 368 pages. $19.99. isbn 978-1 60396-944-4 Lazos de sangre (Blood ties) is renowned Puerto Rican writer Rosario Ferr?'s newest novel. The story is divided into...
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