The Mookse and the Gripes discussion

Earthly Powers, by Anthony Burgess



In Earthly Powers Burgess created his masterpiece. At its center are two twentieth-century men who represent different kinds of power—Kenneth Toomey, a past-his-prime author of mediocre fiction, a man who has outlived his contemporaries to survive into, bitter, luxurious old age, living in self-exile on Malta; and Don Carlo Campanati, a man of God, eventually of church revolution and a candidate for sainthood beloved Pope, who rises through the Vatican as a shrewd manipulator to become the architect.

Through the lives of these two modern men Burgess explores the very essence of power in a narrative that spans from Hollywood, to Dublin, Nairobi, Paris, and beyond.

It is a fair few years since I read this but I am already pretty confident it will finish top of my list. A long complex and rewarding novel of ideas.

I have to second Hugh here.

This is my first encounter with Earthly Powers. Half way through, and I'm loving the journey.

I've read five of the seven 1980 short-listed titles. Earthly Powers definitely tops my list.

I pulled this off the shelf last night to see if I'd have the ability to read it right now. I knew it was long by page count, but, folks, those pages have tiny type! I did read the first chapter, and I'm excited to read more, but I don't think I'll be able to give it the time it deserves until after my Best Translated Book Award duties are fulfilled in a few months. I love the idea of sinking into this book when that's over!

I think I read it when I was staying on my own at Torridon Youth Hostel - at that time that meant no distractions - no TV, no wi-fi, no newspaper shop. It rains a lot in Torridon too!

I'm not very far along at all, but I have confidently set it as first place in the ranking.

Earthly Powers was one mind explosion. Maybe I am slightly biased because the first bit takes place in Malta and although scathing his depiction of us is pretty accurate.

Seriously this is a novel stuffed with memorable scenes and each one leads up to one of the best endings I have ever read - it is akin to a composer's crescendo.

A masterpiece

Robert wrote: "Earthly Powers ...A masterpiece"

Robert,

I agree with you.

This was my first encounter with Burgess (except for Kubrick's adaptation of _Clockwork Orange_). Besides being healthily hilarious, it is a fascinating review of the 20th century. I read it concurrently with Paul Auster's _4 3 2 1_, which also attempts to recap a good portion of the last century. Both books attempt a rather panoramic view, spanning many decades and cultures. It is quite interesting to see what the two authors consider to be historically and culturally relevant for their respective protagonists.

Dan posted some laudatory comments about Earthly Powers on the 1980 general discussion thread, and these comments concur with my own thoughts.
However judging by the volume (or lack of) Goodreads reviews, Earthly Powers has failed to captured widespread reader support and general reader awareness of its existence in the thirty seven years since publication.
What a pity.
Having read all of the 1978 short list (with some very good books) and half the 1980 list, I am of the opinion that Earthly Powers is head and shoulders above the others (I include the much praised A Month in the Country).
Dan surmises that the homosexuality in Earthly Powers might have weighed against it with the Booker judges. I think that may be right. In my Goodreads review my only criticism of Earthly Powers was that I felt Burgess wrote too lightly in his portrayal of violent homosexual sex.
Matthias, Interesting cross reference with 4321. I enjoyed this very much, and both books require a lengthy time commitment from the reader. Of the two I found Earthly Powers to be the harder read, the more scholarly, and the stronger of the two.