Katharina Volckmer

For readers of Ottessa Moshfegh and Han Kang, a whip-smart, darkly funny, and subversive debut novel in which a woman on the verge of major change addresses her doctor in a stream of consciousness narrative. In a well-appointed examination in London, a young woman unburdens herself to a certain Dr. Seligman. Though she can barely see above his head, she holds forth about her life and desires, her struggles with her sexuality and identity. Born and raised in Germany, she has been living in London for several years, determined to break free from her family origins and her haunted homeland. But the recent death of her grandfather, and an unexpected inheritance, make it clear that you cannot easily outrun your own shame, whether it be physical, familial, historical, national, or all of the above. Or can you? With Dr. Seligman’s help, our narrator will find out. In a monologue that is both deliciously dark and subversively funny, she takes us on a wide-ranging journey from Hitler-centered sexual fantasies and overbearing mothers to the medicinal properties of squirrel tails and the notion that anatomical changes can serve as historical reparation. The Appointment is an audacious debut novel by an explosive new international literary voice, challenging all of our notions of what is fluid and what is fixed, and the myriad ways we seek to make peace with others and ourselves in the 21st century.

A Novel

The Appointment

illya

There are a few faults in this book that I'd like to tackle however, I will do so under the spoiler alert. First I must talk about the language used in this book. For one it is beautiful, the comparasions and metaphors are authentic, ethereal and beautiful; while the lexic is brutal and poignent, in a dynamic juxtapostion. However, I must admit that some of the "lesser" developed metaphors ( in lack of better description for them) those used as an afterthought, left a lenghtier bittersweet taste in my mouth than the primal ones. 

Now onto the spoilers.
(view spoiler)[
My main issue with this book is how painfully cis the author is. Not to her fault, she has every right to talk about trans issues, but that doesn't take away the fact that the voice used for the character is aboherrently cisgendered. The mysoginy tangled within his tone, the dread and disgust he feels towards women's bodies toes the line between projection and outright hatred. The attitude from which he speaks of women (cis women at that) is so paternalistic, that at times I thought he was performing a cis-het man. And he was being good at it. This whole "poor women are so dumb that even when they barely have agency to discern if that traditional path they are taking is out of their own volition or not", is not the progressive feminist take it sought out to be.

Also, his tone can get awfully nihilistic in a very self-indulgent way: like he loves to lick his own wounds but never actually heal them. His moral superiority steming from the fact that he "hasn't fallen for the myth of inocense" can turn into some boring old school pesimistic realism that, truth be told, made me roll my eyes one too many times.

I get that due to the scenario and setting the action takes place, it makes sense that the main character's entire story revolves around his transition. Howevery, it's not realistic (just like having such a long blabber under the anestesia is) and hardly good representation.

On a brighter note I have to commend the author for once more her storytelling and pace, for it was very fluid and dynamic. Never a dull moment as the narrator jumps around the story, he contradicts himself and grows, he learns how to forgive himself and the people who hurt him. It was nice to see that he finally got everything out, all the things he should have told Jason, he tells it to the statue-like surgeon. 

A figure we only know is moving and interacting through Emil's blabber. That was a very interesting touch, honestly. How that doctor is able to perform evene when Emil is saying such banal things to him that would have prompted anyone else to just stand up and leave, making it seem as if the doctor is also enjoying this stream of conciousness as we are. Whether that doctor is as invested in K's story, Emil's inheritence and the stapler anecdote as any of us are. Dr. Seligman is both an espectator and an active figure with a bigger role than we could originally have expected. 
 (hide spoiler)]

All in all it was an enjoyable read. There's truly a huge potential in this author and the tenderness with which she handles language and words, with the brute force of the words she uses.

N a well-appointed examination in London, a young woman unburdens herself to a certain Dr. Seligman. Though she can barely see above his head, she holds forth about her life and desires, her struggles with her sexuality and identity. Born and raised in Germany, she has been living in London for several years, determined to break free from her family origins and her haunted homeland. But the recent death of her grandfather, and an unexpected inheritance, make it clear that you cannot easily outrun your own shame, whether it be physical, familial, historical, national, or all of the above. Or can you? With Dr. Seligman's help, our narrator will find out. In a monologue that is both deliciously dark and subversively funny, she takes us on a wide-ranging journey from Hitler-centered sexual fantasies and overbearing mothers to the medicinal properties of squirrel tails and the notion that anatomical changes can serve as historical reparation. The Appointment is an audacious debut novel by an explosive new international literary voice, challenging all of our notions of what is fluid and what is fixed, and the myriad ways we seek to make peace with others and ourselves in the 21st century.

Angbeen Abbas

this was ok - not a bad read but also kind of unimpressive. i liked the writing but it also came off as pretentious every now and then. that, and the fact that a lot of the "dark humour" fell really flat. it wasn't that i was offended - i just felt really bored. this is a book that's pretty standard, but like, it likes to think it's doing something innovative and radical.

Louise 

"I no longer want to be complicit in the bread lie"!!!

Laura Leila Marta

Gary Homewood

A monologue stream of consciousness from a woman at a doctor's. Hitler, sex, transgression and history. Dark, offensive, warped and often funny.

The Appointment A Novel

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