Everitt Clark wrote:

>Another intriguing book which has music as a subject but is not really
>about music is Kazuo Ishiguro's "The Unconsoled"

May I second this?

One of the most surprising successes I have come across in keeping you
wondering, musically and otherwise, is Ishiguro's "The Unconsoled".  It's
slow, it's detailed, it's precise, it's loquacious ...  I soon felt I was
- the concert pianist character was (one quickly identifies) - in some
never-ending tormenting dream, perpetually on the rebound.  Nothing much
happens.  Everything goes subtlly awry.  I felt on the verge of boredom
but moved further and further from the edge as the book progressed, just
waiting, waiting to discover the logical explanation, wondering if there
even was one.  It made me look for links not between but across all the
seemingly different characters and apparent subplots, multiply the multiple
possible facets, delve into schizophrenia, and see the main character
everywhere, in every other character ...

In the Unconsoled, time is circular, and timelessness lies in the illogical
unchronological order of hours, days, and nights, with only the protagonist
striving to live within a normal time sequence - and of course he can only
convince _himself_ he is doing so.  It's Alice in Wonderland for adults,
nightmares, comic relief, 'Duchess' and all.  One is never sure of the
characters' true identities, they're multiple, maybe 'circular' too ...
And the illogical dreamlike complexity becomes steadily greater as the
book progresses to its 'circular' ending.

But it is about musicians, though they are set in a petty world, full of
distress.  The musical discussions are highly credible, and the works
mentioned are only a hair's-breadth away from existence.

Don't worry about the 500+ pages - they eat you up!

Regards

Christine Labroche