![]() ![]() I’ve written elsewhere that what McEwan writes are mystery novels. ![]() We already know that the cement garden of the title doesn’t really refer to their father’s ugly creation: I think it’s on the first page that Jack, the narrator, feels the need to explain why they have so much unused cement, and by the end of the first chapter he knows how to mix it…. How old was McEwan? Had he only previously written the edgy, provocative short stories in First Love, Last Rites – and was it their success that encouraged him to write this edgy, provocative short novel? Certainly, we’re in a recognisable early incarnation of McEwan-land. It’s interesting to read it now as a kind of historical relic. I thought I’d already read this book decades ago, but I was wrong. And anyway, what kind of children’s book revolves around death, masturbation and fantasies of incest? ![]() Clearly, in 1978 McEwan is only a beginner. William Golding gets rid of them before Chapter 1 of Lord of the Flies…. ![]() It was Betsy Byars, an American writing novels for 10-12-year-olds, who once said that the most important thing in all her stories was to get rid of the adults as quickly as possible. The first chapter gets rid of Dad – sorry, Father – and by the end of Chapter 4, about a third of the way through, Mum’s copped it as well. ![]()
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