Bought 1996

And so we reach the end of the Iris Murdoch A Month project with the much-dreaded Jackson’s Dilemma. I remember reading this when it came out in paperback, only really then realising there was something very wrong. And I haven’t read it since, where I have revisited old favourites.

Actually, it wasn’t as bad as I feared. Although it was obviously weaker than the other novels, it was more Murdoch-Lite than a failure.  The huge lapses in continuity (which could surely have been fixed by a kind person somewhere within the publishing process (and yes, I know she had refused to be edited since many books previously)) notwithstanding, Murdoch’s themes and characters were there, and the story was Murdochian and engaging enough, if very short compared to the last few.  Very upsetting at the end, though, where you can read Jackson’s soliloquy as echoing Murdoch’s own thoughts.

Goodbye, Iris – and goodbye IM a month project, although both live on in our discussions of Jackson’s Dilemma and my research project!