While not being a huge fan of biographies this very clever biography of Gustave Flaubert, using a fictional narrator to present the minutiae of Flaubert's life, is a thoroughly engaging read.
Julian Barnes' prodigious research leaves no stone unturned, no parrot omitted, and even includes an exhaustive account of all the family pets and dogs owned by the Flaubert family.


This book was a gift to me, and in order to expand my enjoyment of it I decided to re-read Madame Bovary, having first read it in French many years ago as a text on my university course. This time I returned to it in translation, as an e-book downloaded on my iPhone. Emma Bovary's self-indulgence, her constant and rather selfish agonising about her own life were very good cures for many nights of insomnia in the past couple of weeks.
On reading Flaubert's Parrot I came to a better understanding of the comparisons between Emma's discomfort in her small provincial environs, her longing for a brighter and more interesting life, and Flaubert's own background and attitudes. Emma's lack of commitment to her marriage to Charles mirrors Flaubert's rejection of marriage and longterm relationships in favour of a number of what might be called "liaisons dangereuses". Both Emma and Flaubert share the habit of living in their heads so constantly, with the result that the life of their imagination becomes more of a reality to them than the daily life they lead.


Flaubert's Parrot gives Julian Barnes the opportunity to allow his narrator, a retired English doctor, Geoffrey Braithwaite, to air his opinions of literary critics, to list his objections to certain forms of the novel, to champion the writer rather than the scholar who deconstructs the work of the writer, often inaccurately. Enid Starkie comes in for a significant blast of criticism for her inaccuracy in the matter of the colour of Emma Bovary's eyes. There are numerous lists compiled by Braithwaite that make very interesting reading, and at the same time reveal a great depth of research by Barnes as he prepared the ground for the presentation of this material.
Julian Barnes' writing style is most engaging: there are pithy sentences throughout this book that are worthy of the wit of Oscar Wilde eg "It is not just the life that we know. It is not just the life that has been successfully hidden. It is not just the lies about the life, some of which cannot now be disbelieved. It is also the life that was not led." (p. 121) Or later on in the book you come across pithy maxims such as "You cannot change humanity, you can only know it. Happiness is a scarlet cloak whose lining is in tatters. Lovers are like Siamese twins, two bodies with a single soul..."


The unfolding of Flaubert's life, from what is known, from what is imagined, from what did or didn't happen, all revealed through the passionate narrator's engagement with his subject makes this an interesting and fascinating book. Parallels can be drawn from how Flaubert led his own life and how he approached the creation of his characters. It could be said that Madame Bovary has more than a touch of Flaubert's own personality and behaviour patterns in her life, and in dealing with this consideration Geoffrey Braithwaite has to come to terms with the ultimate tragedy of his own marriage, as he rationalises his wife's infidelity in a rather sad and realistic way :
"But she (Ellen, Braithewaite's wife) was honourable; she only ever lied to me about her secret life. About that she lied impulsively, recklessly, almost embarrassingly; but about everything else she told me the truth. A phrase used by the prosecutor of Madame Bovary to describe Flaubert's art comes back to me: he said it was 'realistic but not discreet'." Even in the midst of his mourning and heartbreak Braithwaite takes solace in Flaubert.
As my other Grinning Cat colleague has stated in her review which you may read, clicking on the reading black cat icon,
it is worthwhile reading or rereading Madame Bovary in tandem with "Flaubert's Parrot". And as she also stated at the end when one might ask a reviewer about what part the parrot played in all of this? Well to begin with, I think he provided a rather lovely cover for the different editions of this book, as our photos show at least two of them. And of course Braithwaite discovers more than one parrot as he progresses through his research. But ultimately I think that Braithwaite himself has taken on the role of a parrot who has memorised his master's sayings. Braithwaite has immersed himself so very deeply in Flaubert's life that he can "parrot" or mimic the writer's sayings, his thoughts, his imaginings and give a very rounded picture of his life.


I loved this book. It is not a "quick" read: it repays a more leisurely pace of reading, to give time to the reader to ponder a little what has been disclosed and discussed in each chapter. I shall shortly start another Julian Barnes novel, because as he himself put these words into Braithwaite's mouth I found more than an element of truth about myself in them: "If you quite like a writer's work, if you turn the page approvingly yet don't mind being interrupted, then you tend to like the author unthinkingly". (p.127)
After reading this book another one by Barnes waits tantalisingly in my book pile.