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ShareNesberg's debut novel is a solid effort, but might throw novice readers with its complex structure
Enter the Ape
Richard Nesberg
Frog books
128pp
Rs145
"Dream, dream, dream...all I have to do is dream". This evergreen song was made famous by the Everly Brothers. The basis of the song forms the basis of Richard Nesberg's debut book. Do not be fooled by the title, 'Enter the Ape' is about dreams, dreams and only dreams.
Thurston Thomas likes to dream. He likes to dream because he can set the plots of his dreams and summon particular characters according to his moods and needs. He revels in this ability of his - controlling things he cannot control in real life. The problem arises when the dreams become larger than life, literally. His dreamscape is taken over by the very characters he created.They begin to believe they are real and therein lies Thurston's real challenge.
The characters in Thurston's dreams are all 'fools'. The most prominent of them being the ape that goes by different names - the esteemed Mr Huxley, Mike O'Malley, Stu etc. Then there is Joanna Warwick who is the common girl between Hank 'The Tank' Clemens - an angry clown and John 'The King' Clarkson who runs a gaming centre. Kilgore Besny, a physics expert who loves guessing games is the other 'fool'. Besides, there are other side characters.
According to author Richard Nesberg, he has used a relatively new literary genre called flash fiction. It features everything expected of fiction except that the plot, dialogue, and character development is delivered in brief (quoted in www.gloomcupboard.com).
The characters are fascinating and are like people one comes across every day; ordinary people with depression, disillusionment, problems and needs.Their stories make for fascinating reading. It is only when the characters come together that the confusion begins.
The ape could be a symbol for what we want to actually do in public, but cannot for trepidation that we will be called animals. Thurston's ability to control his dreams could stem from his need to control his life. When he loses this ability he fears that his whole existence will spiral out of control.
This book is not recommended for first time readers, but hardcore book-lovers. They should be able to devote time to finish the entire book at a stretch else it would be difficult to follow the characters. A one time read only.
l_Joanna@dnaindia.net
