Cultural Dessert

Anne Tyler is an author who produces hugely entertaining, readable novels which are all much more clever and profound than they appear – tackling difficult subjects without creating difficult prose – something also achieved by David Lodge but not many others in my opinion. ‘Noah’s Compass’ is Anne Tyler’s 18^th novel and sees her returning to a familiar format after the more ambitious digressions of her previous two books, ‘The Amateur Marriage’ and ‘Digging to America’. Set, as always, in Baltimore ‘Noah’s Compass’ is a seemingly simple tale of family relationships, aging, loneliness and memory loss. It has much in common with one of Tyler’s most celebrated works, ‘The Accidental Tourist’ but shows, I think, a maturing confidence in her writing, relying much less on exaggerated comic characters and set-pieces. Like a stripped-down version of ‘The Accidental Tourist’ everyone is less extreme and more believable, less happens but the emotional interaction feels stronger. ‘Noah’s Compass’ is a short novel – the first book I’ve read at a single sitting for some time – but manages to be intriguing, funny and very moving. Less is more.