The Infinities

John Banville

05 March 2010
9780330450256
304 pages

Synopsis

‘This is unequivocally a work of brilliance.’ Justin Cartwright, Spectator

Old Adam Godley’s time on earth is drawing to an end, and as his wife and children gather at the family home, little do they realize that they are not the only ones who have come to observe the spectacle.

The mischievous Greek gods, too, have come; as tensions fray and desire bubbles over, their spying soon becomes intrusion becomes intervention, until the mortals’ lives – right before their eyes – seem to be changing faster than they can cope with.

Overflowing with bawdy humour, John Banville has allowed his twinkling eye to rove through memories of the past and relationships of the present in this moving family drama. The Infinities is both a salacious delight and a penetrating exploration of the terrifying, wonderful, immutable plight of being human.

A poetic vision of boundless possibility.
Full of dark humour and written with a deft eye for detail.
This darkly comic and fearsomely clever creation is a heady delight.