Stitch and Bear

A long-running Irish blog with reviews of the best restaurants in Dublin and throughout Ireland. Some wine and cocktails thrown in for good measure!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Firmin - Sam Savage

I first took note of Firmin when I saw that a person with a similar library profile on LibraryThing.com had recently added the book. It caught my interest from the get go, seeing as how it is that interesting thing, a book about books.

Here's a word of warning before you even pick this book up in the shop. It is heartbreakingly sad. Firmin is the runt of his litter, born to a drunken rat mother in the basement of Pembroke Books. Fed on a diet of shredded James Joyce, he develops a taste for literature and dares to dream above his position in life. Firmin becomes human through his fascination with our books, but his attempts to communicate are dashed everytime. Firmin just wants to be loved and even dreams of the "Lovelies" - the beautiful women who star in burlesque shows.

We watch the demolition of a historic part of Boston through the eyes of the rat, and mourn with him as the burlesque shows and shabby businesses are removed in the name of progress. It's amazing how the story of a human rat shows up the lack of humanity in humans.
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