Flesh: A Novel, David Szalay, author; Daniel Weyman, narrator
In Hungary, young István lived in a modest apartment complex with his mother. She was a very important part of his life, mainly as a confidant. He rarely revealed himself honestly to others, but she accepted him completely with his warts and foibles. István seemed to have very little affect, like a blank page that had only just begun to be written upon. Often, he seemed like a contradiction in terms. He was unaware of what an “ipod” was, but he knew so much about the BMW automobile. He spoke in short sentences, and when questioned his answers were often monosyllabic. A simple yeah or okay sufficed for him.
One day, István’s mother arranged for him to do errands for an older woman in their complex. Although he did not want to, he seemed mild-mannered and did not disobey his mother. That decision changed the path of his life, turning it in an unintended direction.
At one point, a few years later, while being treated by a doctor who had been a schoolmate, he seemed to almost realize that his life could also have been different and more successful, but for the choices he made. Unfortunately, that woman for whom he did errands, took complete advantage of his flatness, his innocence and his ignorance. She enticed him with her treats and her subtle questions, into having a sexual relationship with her, one he did not understand. He confused it with love. She was an adult, three times his age, and he was a 15-year-old teenager. She taught him all he had to know about sex, about pleasuring himself and a woman, and her actions placed him on a path of destruction and failure. When she suddenly ended the relationship, he was confused, angry and frustrated, as only a teenager could be. Their relationship had consumed him. Soon, an altercation between István and her husband altered the entire trajectory of his life.
István was incarcerated. When he was released, he found he could not find work. The people he met while incarcerated gave him an additional education. He learned to further seduce women, drink and do drugs; so that was what he did for awhile, until he joined the army, hoping to find a more stable direction for his life. While delivering water to Ukrainians, however, his friend was killed. Soon, he blamed himself. Then one day, he heard a cry for help. He investigated and saved the man’s life. That man offered him a job in security. Eventually, he became his personal driver and assistant. His life might have improved, but the man’s wife seduced István and they began an affair. This would once again alter the trajectory of his life. When she was widowed, they married. They lived in London in the lap of luxury for several years, but his stepson disliked him intensely. Soon they had a son of their own.
Using his wife’s temporary control of her fortune, until her son reached age 25, István tried to become a successful businessman, but soon tragedy again. He found himself without means, without a home or a job, so he and his mom returned to Hungary to live in the flat in which he was raised. His life had gone full circle as if nothing had occurred in between.
The story is told in bits and pieces so that until the end, it may not be fully understood. I had found István unlikable, especially as the story progressed, but I also did not find many other characters likable either. At the end, however, I did feel sympathy for István. He never was truly able to find his own center of gravity. Women played major roles in his life, but when it came to them, he was often preoccupied by the sex. He never really understood what love meant to most people. He grew attached to them, but his relationships seemed more due to convenience than anything else. When things changed in his life, he simply seemed to move on, adapting, almost as if nothing had happened and he just changed his direction freely.
István seemed to prefer women who were older, and that could be because of his close relationship with his mother, or perhaps, because of his very first sexual involvement with his neighbor. He seemed immature and strangely naïve at times, so perhaps he was constantly in need of a mother figure to guide him. He floundered whenever a woman left him.
When the final page was turned, I wondered, did István ever truly feel real emotion? He seemed to simply react the same way regardless of what happened to him. Like a rolling stone, he gathered no moss, made no changes in his life, but remained the same, affectless even as a grown man. He was okay or he wasn’t okay. When suggested, he would sometimes turn to counseling and medication which helped put him on the straight and narrow again, but he never seemed to grow, and always remained with few visible emotional reactions. Deeply affected by some events in his life, even when seemingly moved to tears, he simply then moved on. Often, he did not understand his own reactions, especially when he would grow violent. He didn’t understand what had provoked him to behave in the extreme.
I found the sexual descriptions to be very explicit, almost pornographic at times, and the language used was sometimes off-putting. I really forced myself to continue to read on since it won the Booker award. I found some of the comments repetitive, as in “okay, yeah, I don’t know, what do you mean”? In the end, however, I found the book was interesting as it detailed a life gone off the beaten track and often in the wrong direction, mostly because the decisions of others put it on the wrong track. Even when things went right, they went astray. Few characters were good examples. Most were unhappy and unfulfilled regardless of what they had or didn’t have in life. When I finished the book, I thought this was the story of a life that never quite fulfilled itself. The choices made and the actions taken made it a life on the road less traveled. I wondered, however, was the flaw in István’s character that made him so flat emotionally, the cause of his constant reversals, or was this book a statement about the fact that there are many bullies out there, many who are willing to abuse others weaker than them. István was easily taken advantage of and there were so many people ready to do just that.