Youth

J M Coetzee

Editions

Review

Coetzee tells the story of a young man who leaves 1950’s South Africa to come to London, where he hopes to fulfil his ambition to be a writer.

Coetzee’s previous novel, Disgrace pbk £6.99, was remarkable for its portrayal of modern South Africa, and a middle-aged man’s attempts to come to terms with new and shocking circumstances; here, a young man leaves 1950’s South Africa for London, hoping to become a writer.  There is no shock for him, but a gradual realisation that his life does not match up to his expectations, and he subjects himself to ceaseless self-examination, in a doomed attempt to get his life back on track – namely, to become a writer, and find a girlfriend.  Instead of studying literature, he studies mathematics; instead of being a writer, he works for IBM.

You definitely get the impression that Coetzee, whilst not without affection for his protagonist, is also laughing at his ridiculous illusions – which is all the more interesting when you consider that there might well be autobiographical elements in the book.  There are some very striking episodes – the loveless affair with a psychologically unstable nurse, his inability to comfort a girlfriend who has an abortion and so forth – but it is the overall portrait of a young man perilously short on self-knowledge, and hopelessly ill-equipped to deal with others, which gives the book its resonance.  A very subtle book, beautifully written. - review by Dan Fenton