Exquisite Cadavers
By Meena Kandasamy
Genre: Literary Fiction
Publisher: Atlantic Books
*Gifted*
Karim and Maya:
[x] share a home
[x] worry about money
[x] binge-watch films
[x] argue all the time
Watch the Breakdown
Maya and Karim are married, and wrapping themselves in their own love codes, whilst navigating life in London. The book switches between both characters perspectives giving you a deep insight into their minds. Karim who is Tunisian is studying film making and is trying to make his own vision of art rather than being confined to his funders idea of what an Arab should create. Maya works for a newspaper, has a chain-smoking habit and is a bundle of emotions, with undealt with childhood abandonment emotions that leak into her relationship with Karim repeating their pattern of tension and avoidance.
Alongside this arching story, the author is also navigating life in London, filling in the foot/side notes.
“In a conversation between forms, fictions and truths, Exquisite Cadavers is a novel about a young couple navigating love in London, and a literary hall of mirrors about an author navigating the inspirations behind her work.”
Is that how you’re feeling yeah
The first thing I did was google what Cadaver meant. If you don’t know what it means don’t front it out. A cadaver is a dead human body that is used for science purposes, so medical students would study and dissect cadavers.
The preface section (right at the beginning of the book) had my attention, and then as when I went into the first chapter I found the layout confusing, as there were two central things going on and I drifted. As the book progressed I really appreciated the side notes and getting the chance to learn about the author’s mind-set and creative process whilst making the book. It wasn’t long before I was more interested in Meena’s side notes, and reading the story as a supplement to that and not the other way around. I really liked the breakdown of what guided Meena to make the characters behave and think how they did.
It reminded me of an exercise I used to do and thoroughly enjoyed. Effectively I’d sit at a table with 4-5 other people. Each of us would write a sentence and then pass our paper around continuing each other’s stories adding our own perspective to what had been written above.
It was also interesting to see as things unravelled in Meena’s life how it translated into the story. As much as the novel was fiction, Meena wanted her and her female character Maya to have some common ground, something to bond them so made Maya pregnant like herself.
The writing style of the book was very free form and innovative, but the story itself just didn’t reel me in. In between reading the story I kept stopping to look in a dictionary for the meaning of words. *Side note: I extended my vocabulary, but I was already struggling to stay engaged so it did no favours*
“I cannot relate to her if I do not share anything with her. So, I end up making her pregnant.”
I have a personal connection with Tunisia and that is the main reason why I wanted to read the book. The last ten pages built up the visuals for me - I could smell the smoke and taste the harissa, but as quick as the visual came the story just ended.
It Hit me when
Right at the end of the book when Maya came home to Karim not being there. She knew straight away that somehting wasn’t right, and then she received a text from Karim. It was clear that Karim was the most stable and consistent thing in Maya’s life and probably had been for a while. Plus, she’d just found out that she was pregnant and hadn’t had the chance to tell him yet. With the reoccurring theme of abandonment that Maya has had Meena really captured Maya’s panic and vulnerability.
“Had to leave to Tunis urgently. Cannot tell you more atm, please take care, my love. Will call soonest, bisous.”
Length
104 pages including acknowledgement, but I thought it was too short. It ended as I’d started to get into it, in particular Karim’s journey to Tunisia.
Seasoning Level
CO2 | Salt | Pepper | Mixed Herbs | All Purpose Seasoning
I can’t see myself remembering this book, there was nothing substantially seasoned about it, I would, however, be open to reading some of Meena Kandasamy’s other titles.
*Gifted by Atlantic Books. The book’s release date is the 7th November 2019.