Reviews

The Appointment: A Novel by Katharina Volckmer

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deathicey's review

challenging dark emotional reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

This was a stream of consciousness from the narrator to a Jewish doctor which is her gyno/doctor doing a medical procedure which is implied to be some sort of exam to get a sex change to me; in this case, the doctor doesn't even speak once or reply once to her.

She speaks about almost everything her frustrations about how she got the point she did and her feelings across various subjects. Nationality of her being German, Nazism, sexuality, Japanese sex toys and other odd subjects. The way this novel is made it unpublishable in Germany (there might be a single edition from 2021 unsure though) and from her words the publishers were scandalized by it because they think it's too radical, but that proves the point and basis of the end being able to talk about uncomfortable conversations.

This is the type of book to push your buttons and get a reactionary statement from you, especially in an age where people are quick to jump to conclusions its nice to just be able to listen and see things from a different perspective. This has alot of the same feel as some of Ottessa Moshfegh's books where they are trying hard to shock you and create a narrative by being stuck in place by shock.

isabelrstev's review against another edition

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challenging dark funny mysterious reflective

4.75

thebobsphere's review against another edition

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5.0

Despite the fact that The Appointment is a slim novella, it contains many themes and points for discussion. Rather than expand on them, I will give a brief list:

The body, German identity, old age, love, parenthood, masculinity, sexual constraints, technology, the human condition, truth vs illusion, gender fluidity, warfare, feminism, religion, the problem of evil.

That’s only a small sample, I’m sure I left a few out.

The book takes the form of a German talking to a doctor, who is examining her. Although the book is presented as a monologue, the are moments when the doctor communicates with the narrator, but we readers do not witness that. In between the philosophical/moral ‘digressions’ the main protagonist slowly reveals information about her life ; that she has moved to the U.K. , an affair she had with a therapist, a previous relationship with someone called K (tribute to The Trial??) her upbringing and her guilt for being a German due to past events (the dr is Jewish). Eventually we find out why she is being examined.

One may get the impression that this monologue is a melodramatic one but that’s the opposite. There are many moments where I laughed loudly and there are doses of black humor : the narrator imagines if Hitler’s ceral bowls would have images of Swastikas on them (these actually did exist), the reasons why one should not pleasure oneself with a banana and the corrosive nature of pigeon excrement, also throwing in that those old ladies who feed pigeons should have been exterminated when the Swiss government were culling pigeons.

However, despite all the plot points mentioned, the book’s subtitle is an indicator of what, I felt The Appointment is mainly about, which is the body : how things differ when one has a penis or a vagina, why men can swim topless and women cannot, why men’s toilets are better equipped for their private parts, even the notions of being described as a male or female are discussed (the main protagonist likes to wear male clothing as clothes should not have a gender)

Not only the sexual aspects of the body are discussed. The main protagonist fears old age, after watching her mother change, and the way it destroys us.

I have stated quite a few times of what makes a novel a ‘Bob Book’ and this is one of them. Complex, controversial and yet with funny moments, The Appointment is an unforgettable, poignant, prescient and eye opening read.