Dan Jacobson (1929–2014)

The Confessions of Josef Baisz is presented as the posthumous memoir of one Josef Baisz, a minor official in the government of the fictional Republic of Sarmeda. The geographical specifics of Sarmeda are not provided, but the country has a North and a South. Baisz hails from the rural, backward North and, when he joins the Republican Guard, is relieved to escape his home town of Vliss and a family with a checkered past of which he is ashamed. While suffering through basic training in the company of bullies and dolts, he makes a lightning-quick decision that marks him as a hero. It is also a deliberate act of petty revenge that ruins the life of an ignorant and guileless fellow cadet, but this outcome troubles Baisz not at all. As a result of his quick thinking, Baisz is recruited to serve as personal bodyguard for the Deputy Minister of National Guidance, and the course of his career is set. Over the years, Baisz serves many masters, all of whom trust him implicitly, all of whom he holds in contempt and betrays in a variety of ways. It is by means of these betrayals and a combination of luck, cagey opportunism, and heartless scheming that he is able to steer his career in a mostly upward direction. By serving those in positions of power, the wily and observant Baisz finds himself uniquely situated to witness the rampant corruption and capricious brutalities of a totalitarian state that keeps its citizens subservient to an inflexible ideology and in thrall to the politically resilient Heerser, the Sarmedian see-all, know-all supreme leader. But when the ultimate reckoning comes in response to a betrayal more contemptible than any he has previously committed, one that even he can’t justify or condone, Baisz finds himself stricken by an unaccustomed fit of conscience and retreats from public life to compose his tattle-tale autobiography. Dan Jacobson’s novel is a triumph: an expert blending of style with substance. In Josef Baisz, Jacobson has created a loathsome and dangerous amoral creature: a man with no qualms about destroying others in order to gain an advantage or achieve advancement, but who also, like an insect or parasite, has no sense of purpose. Throughout the book, Baisz speaks to us in the confident and sardonic voice of someone who knows that his conduct is repugnant, that he lacks redeeming qualities, that he is undeserving of the success that comes his way, but doesn’t care because ruthlessness and sheer cunning will ensure his survival. What is unexpected is how funny the novel often is, as Baisz comments on the shortcomings of his superiors and informs us in gleeful fashion what he’s up to behind their backs. The Confessions of Josef Baisz is a wry commentary on human civilization in the late 20th century, with specific reference to the type of person who is likely to flourish in a society built on absolute control and the suppression of individual will. It is also an enormously entertaining and supremely intelligent work of fiction by an unjustly neglected author who, when it was published in 1977, was clearly at the top of his game.… (plus d'informations)

A strange book. When he eventually gets into 'Her Story' the writing is luminous, passionate and compelling, an allegory on the supposed life of either Mary, mother of Jesus, or of the mother of one of the criminals crucified alongside him. But almost the first third (43 of 141 pages in my Flamingo paperback) is taken up with an unconvincing sci-fi introduction by an archivist / historian in 22nd century England, now apparently an Islamic (or possibly post-Islamic) state. Given that the novel was published in 1987, this shows remarkable prescience of more modern (2015) issues, but for me it adds little to either the value or the meaning of the main story. If time permitted I would search for serious critical reviews that might explain the relevance of the sci-fi element. None-the-less a good read, but don't hesitate to skip if you get bored with the sci-fi bit waiting to find out why you're reading it - I never did!… (plus d'informations)

Early novel by South African fiction writer Dan Jacobson chronicles the life of Kenneth Makeer, a black man whose skin is light enough to "pass for" white. Through good fortune he acquires a benefactor who pays for his education and makes it possible for him to study law in London. While in London he becomes involved with a white South African, Isabel Last. Knowing the specific danger they face, they marry and return to South Africa, where both are imprisoned under the Immorality Act, a real law of Apartheid South Africa that criminalized sexual relations between whites and non-whites. Convincing portrayal of the struggle of South African blacks and their white sympathizers to endure an oppressive society and yet overcome its absurd restrictions.… (plus d'informations)