A true page turner, Disgrace grabs you early on with an effortless narrative of unspectacular events, which eventually develop into more consequential moments. Coetzee's writing is magnificent. The words drip from his pen like so much honey; drawing images and scenarios with ease. Reading his text is magically unconstrained, but the subtext is rife with symbolism throughout.
Without divulging events that might spoil the read for others, certain incidents occur that turn the plot drastically in the direction of professional disgrace for the main character. This leads him down other paths and he ends up visiting his only daughter, who lives alone on a farms of sorts, out in the country. Certain matters converge and, this being South Africa in the early post-apartheid years, a series of unfortunate situations unfold that reflect the struggles for all involved when adapting to a new set of rules for cohabitation. Particularly the consideration of past harms done to a people and the inevitable resentment that persists within those generations that follow.
As the novel proceeds we can read into many events a reflective measure of David's (David Lourie, the novel's central character)past actions, and find the balancing act nature creates in our lives to carry a certain sense of inevitability. Others do unto us what we do unto others.
A wonderful read with much to tell us. It is a novel of devastating insight that poses many questions and offers few answers. As any good novel should do, it leaves the pondering to the reader.
Read from April 12 to 20, 2013
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