Hopeless Case / Review of Some Hope by Edward St. Aubyn - V26 Nov/Dec 2004

Three Portaits in the Life of the Hopeless

A review of Some Hope, a trilogy by Edward St. Aubyn

Those with strong father complexes or unresolved issues with their parents should perhaps steer clear of Some Hope, which, with the character of David Melrose, depicts what is perhaps the most unrepentantly mean-spirited parent since Mommy Dearest. Though David is, for the most part, only an incidental character in the novel, it's his interaction with his son, and the subsequent lifetime of damage caused by it, which propels the book. Some Hope is actually three short novellas, all of which tell the story of Patrick Melrose, from his traumatic upbringing by a maniacal father and perpetually drunken, emotionally-deadened mother, to his adult life as a drug addict and obscenely wealthy ne'er-do-well. The book is alternately a meditation on the damage done by parents to their children and a lacerating critique of the rich and hopelessly bored. This might all be a tired exercise in joylessness if it weren't for Edward St. Aubyn's luminous and acidic prose, which manages to be simultaneously grotesque, hilarious, and shockingly beautiful. Already a well-known writer in the UK, Some Hope marks his debut in the U.S.

- T. Cole Rachel