Resumen
Logan Mountstuarts life in the book tumbles across almost every continent and decade of the 20th century. From a Uruguayan childhood and British schooling to a writerly - and wartime - career that bears him through Europe, Africa and America, it is a panoramic picaresque of a life. Casually bumping into a James Joyce over dinner, Picasso at a party or even the occasional crowned prince; it could have been tempting for the novel to slip into a roll-call of cultural icons - but it remains steadfastly loyal to the human and individual focus. Logan is not simply a guide to the century, he is a man with a growing voice and heart that reel you in. Ultimately, amid the chaos, conflicts and clutter of the century, it is his dreams, his joys and sadnesses that matter to the reader. Logans assessments of the art or politics of his day may be revealing, but so are the facets of his personal life - from his choice of lover, to his choice of dinner. So too it is his fascination with writing, his career as novelist, critic, journalist and more, that sensitises us to Boyds own prose, skilfully adjusting and maturing along with our hero. It may be a novel about writing - but it never loses track of the need to know what is being written about - the eloquence, absurdity and resonance of a human life.
