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A review by franfernandezarce
The Elected Member by Bernice Rubens
4.0
you enter the novel to find Norman, its so-called 'elected member', a drug addict who sees tiny silver fish crawling everywhere around him. the cover does this story the disservice of making the reader think the metallic hues of said fish will be representative of its tone. instead, Rubens' exploration on addiction, family trauma, and reconciliation is more fittingly coloured by Francis Bacon's nude studies than anything else--pitch-black backgrounds bearing hints of white human figures struggling to come into the foreground.
the highs in Rubens' writing manage by a slim margin to upset the lows. her ability to craft a set of distinctive yet complex characters within a single group trumps any criticism one might have of her ability to structure the time frame of the story. there could be smoother ways of presenting flashbacks, of course, but one's care for each individual involved supposes one will follow them past, present, and future without a thought. anyone looking for complex, short-format family dramas will be pleased to encounter this story.
the highs in Rubens' writing manage by a slim margin to upset the lows. her ability to craft a set of distinctive yet complex characters within a single group trumps any criticism one might have of her ability to structure the time frame of the story. there could be smoother ways of presenting flashbacks, of course, but one's care for each individual involved supposes one will follow them past, present, and future without a thought. anyone looking for complex, short-format family dramas will be pleased to encounter this story.