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upnorth's review
challenging
dark
funny
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
thisisstephenbetts's review
3.0
The eponymous "Only Problem" is that of how a benevolent omnipotent God allows suffering in the world, as epitomised in the Book Of Job, which is the obsession of the central character, Harvey. There is some interesting discussion of The Problem, but the story is more about Harvey's more modern-day (and somewhat self-inflicted) sufferings. These are almost insignificant by most definitions of suffering, which gives the book a satiric edge, although the humour is bone dry.
Spark doesn't tend to describe transitions - rather she narrates vignettes from different points in the plot. (I also noticed this in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie). It's an interesting and distinctive approach, and one that perhaps mirrors life.
An enjoyable and idiosyncratic book, though a little unsatisfying.
Spark doesn't tend to describe transitions - rather she narrates vignettes from different points in the plot. (I also noticed this in The Prime Of Miss Jean Brodie). It's an interesting and distinctive approach, and one that perhaps mirrors life.
An enjoyable and idiosyncratic book, though a little unsatisfying.
kelseyleftwich's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
tillybeller's review
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
mondovertigo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Infidelity
Moderate: Murder and Violence
Minor: Pregnancy
grubstlodger's review
3.0
The Only Question is my second Muriel Spark this year, it tells the story of Harvey Gotham, who becomes a ‘person of interest’ after his estranged wife becomes wanted for a series of robberies. He’s also writing about The Book of Job, so a lot of the book will be taken up by Job-talk.
It’s hard to call Harvey a protagonist, he doesn’t really do anything and most of the story happens around him, we’re also introduced to him sideways on, like the book sneaks up on him. At first, the reader follows Edward, Harvey’s brother-in-law, former curate but current actor and all round nice guy. He’s come to see Harvey after he left his sister-in-law during an Italian holiday because she shoplifted two bars of chocolate. Harvey is depicted as being slightly rigid, infertile (though he does later make Edward’s wife pregnant) and just generally cold and unpleasant.
The first half of the book moves along very quickly, the reader is introduced to a set of simple but clearly defined characters who swap partners with a surprising degree of equanimity, have little eccentricities and quirks and are more interested in having theological discussions then anything else - it reminded me of Julian Barnes. Then, when the point of view settles more on Harvey, the plot of the missing (soon to be) ex-wife and her terrorist activities comes to affect him. He deals with it very badly, unable to give a good explanation for why he hung baby clothes on a washing line outside his house when he didn’t have a baby or why he bought a chateau for his sister-in-law and his wife’s baby with another man. His most inexplicable act is when he turns a press conference about the whole terrorist affair into a lecture on The Book of Job and then was angry at them for not listening. He’s a bit of a boob.
If Harvey was supposed to be a Job figure, it didn’t work all that well. He didn’t lose his money or security, he didn’t get personally ill, he wasn’t really invested enough in other people to feel any sting from the accusation he was a terrorist accomplice and he didn’t ever ask God why. The worst thing that happened to him was some polite police kept asking him questions and, unlike Job, their persistence with him was because his answers were so weird and his attitude so unhelpful. There’s a running joke in one chapter where the policemen keep informing him that a policeman has died but it makes sense from the point of view of the policemen, because he seems utterly unaffected by the fact a woman he has loved might have killed someone. Job was given torments because he was a good person and God wanted to test him, Harvey’s problems stem from his own detachment from emotion. What’s more, his book about Job, from the many discussions had about it, does not deal with the central problem of bad things happening to good people but to be a collection of minor quibbles, fan-fiction and translation gripes.
The book itself is a quick, easy and enjoyable enough read but, like a lot of Muriel Spark books, a little opaque and frustrating. I’ll keep reading her though because I feel creating these short, slightly jabbing needles of books is the point and I enjoy the provocation.
It’s hard to call Harvey a protagonist, he doesn’t really do anything and most of the story happens around him, we’re also introduced to him sideways on, like the book sneaks up on him. At first, the reader follows Edward, Harvey’s brother-in-law, former curate but current actor and all round nice guy. He’s come to see Harvey after he left his sister-in-law during an Italian holiday because she shoplifted two bars of chocolate. Harvey is depicted as being slightly rigid, infertile (though he does later make Edward’s wife pregnant) and just generally cold and unpleasant.
The first half of the book moves along very quickly, the reader is introduced to a set of simple but clearly defined characters who swap partners with a surprising degree of equanimity, have little eccentricities and quirks and are more interested in having theological discussions then anything else - it reminded me of Julian Barnes. Then, when the point of view settles more on Harvey, the plot of the missing (soon to be) ex-wife and her terrorist activities comes to affect him. He deals with it very badly, unable to give a good explanation for why he hung baby clothes on a washing line outside his house when he didn’t have a baby or why he bought a chateau for his sister-in-law and his wife’s baby with another man. His most inexplicable act is when he turns a press conference about the whole terrorist affair into a lecture on The Book of Job and then was angry at them for not listening. He’s a bit of a boob.
If Harvey was supposed to be a Job figure, it didn’t work all that well. He didn’t lose his money or security, he didn’t get personally ill, he wasn’t really invested enough in other people to feel any sting from the accusation he was a terrorist accomplice and he didn’t ever ask God why. The worst thing that happened to him was some polite police kept asking him questions and, unlike Job, their persistence with him was because his answers were so weird and his attitude so unhelpful. There’s a running joke in one chapter where the policemen keep informing him that a policeman has died but it makes sense from the point of view of the policemen, because he seems utterly unaffected by the fact a woman he has loved might have killed someone. Job was given torments because he was a good person and God wanted to test him, Harvey’s problems stem from his own detachment from emotion. What’s more, his book about Job, from the many discussions had about it, does not deal with the central problem of bad things happening to good people but to be a collection of minor quibbles, fan-fiction and translation gripes.
The book itself is a quick, easy and enjoyable enough read but, like a lot of Muriel Spark books, a little opaque and frustrating. I’ll keep reading her though because I feel creating these short, slightly jabbing needles of books is the point and I enjoy the provocation.
jjoannacanread's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
kellym_16829's review against another edition
challenging
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
launderground's review
4.0
Essa foi provavelmente uma das leituras mais aleatórias que já fiz. Nos últimos meses tinha ficado curiosa para ler a obra da Muriel Spark, quem não foi muito traduzida aqui no Brasil. Vi esse livro na biblioteca da minha faculdade e decidi pegar emprestado, mas duvidando se eu realmente leria. No final das contas, acabei lendo e que surpresa!
Socorro, como eu vou explicar a história desse livro? Tá bem, vamos lá… Harvey Gotham, sua esposa Effie, sua cunhada Ruth, o marido dela Edward e o amigo deles Nathan fazem uma viagem pela Itália. No caminho, Harvey decide deixar sua esposa quando descobre que ela roubou um chocolate. Assim, Harvey vai passar seus dias em um chalé na França, onde se dedica a terminar de escrever sua monografia sobre o “Livro de Jó”. Ruth aparece no chalé com Clara, filha de Effie, e decide ficar. Enquanto isso, Effie é a principal suspeita de participar de um perigoso grupo terrorista que está aterrorizando a Europa e a polícia fica na cola de Harvey para que ele revele algo sobre o paradeiro da esposa.
Primeiro que eu adorei a escrita da Muriel Spark, que é espirituosa, irônica e muito inteligente. Os personagens trazem o melhor desse ar de “classe média excêntrica”, algo que eu adoro ler e assistir. A trama conta com várias coisinhas “ absurdas” que a tornam muito divertida. A história tem como pano de fundo uma discussão religiosa sobre a razão de Deus permitir o “sofrimento”, que é usada de maneira muito interessante para caracterizar a personalidade de Harvey e contribuir para o desenvolvimento da narrativa.
Uma leitura muito legal e cheia de momentos geniais, que me deixou ainda mais curiosa para conhecer outras coisas da Muriel Spark.
Socorro, como eu vou explicar a história desse livro? Tá bem, vamos lá… Harvey Gotham, sua esposa Effie, sua cunhada Ruth, o marido dela Edward e o amigo deles Nathan fazem uma viagem pela Itália. No caminho, Harvey decide deixar sua esposa quando descobre que ela roubou um chocolate. Assim, Harvey vai passar seus dias em um chalé na França, onde se dedica a terminar de escrever sua monografia sobre o “Livro de Jó”. Ruth aparece no chalé com Clara, filha de Effie, e decide ficar. Enquanto isso, Effie é a principal suspeita de participar de um perigoso grupo terrorista que está aterrorizando a Europa e a polícia fica na cola de Harvey para que ele revele algo sobre o paradeiro da esposa.
Primeiro que eu adorei a escrita da Muriel Spark, que é espirituosa, irônica e muito inteligente. Os personagens trazem o melhor desse ar de “classe média excêntrica”, algo que eu adoro ler e assistir. A trama conta com várias coisinhas “ absurdas” que a tornam muito divertida. A história tem como pano de fundo uma discussão religiosa sobre a razão de Deus permitir o “sofrimento”, que é usada de maneira muito interessante para caracterizar a personalidade de Harvey e contribuir para o desenvolvimento da narrativa.
Uma leitura muito legal e cheia de momentos geniais, que me deixou ainda mais curiosa para conhecer outras coisas da Muriel Spark.
graceemreads's review against another edition
3.0
I love Muriel Spark’s writing, it’s beautifully rich and darkly humorous. Personally, I just didn’t care much for the story. The premise is interesting enough and her writing is as excellent as ever but it just didn’t compare to The Driver’s Seat or The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. I’m glad to have read it but it’s not my favourite piece.
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