Book Buffet

Friday July 17, 2009

Sex, lies and videotape

Review by TERENCE TOH

Testimony

Publisher: Little, Brown 307 pages

IT is said that one should not judge a book by its cover but there are exceptions to this rule – Anita Shreve's novel, Testimony, is one of them. Not only is its dust jacket gorgeous, it is also captivating and gripping on the inside, offering one of the most poignant stories I have read in quite some time.

Shreve is well-known for her evocative writing and deeply personal character-driven stories. Author of14 novels, her books have been shortlisted for the prestigious Orange Prize, selected by Oprah's Book Club, and even made into Hollywood feature films (Resistance, starring Bill Paxton and Julia Ormond). She maintains the same stunning quality of writing she is known for in her latest effort, Testimony, which will definitely please her fans and satisfy new readers.

The novel takes place in Avery Academy, a prestigious boarding school in New England. Newly appointed headmaster Mike Bordwin finds himself in a sensitive situation: a videotape has been discovered, recording four of his students engaging in sexual acts. Three of those students are star members of the school basketball team, promising athletes, brilliant scholars, well-liked by all, while the fourth is a young girl who is barely 14.

Bordwin finds himself in over his head, trying his best to contain the tape and at the same time deal with the consequences of a serious mistake he committed in his past, but it is too late. The tape plays havoc with the lives of everyone remotely involved in it, from the students involved to their parents, the school staff and the inhabitants of the small town of Avery. Futures are jeopardised. Relationships destroyed. Lives are never the same again.

Testimony is told in many chapters, each one being the point of view, or testimony, of one of the characters in the tale. Shreve used first, third and even second person narrative when necessary to relate the story's events, a commendable effort which makes every chapter feel unique. This, however, may give a bit of a disjointed feel in the beginning, as the reader is not yet familiar with the characters and their parts in the story. To complicate matters, Shreve does not stick to a linear narrative but leaps back and forwards in time to tell her story.

This, fortunately, is only true at the beginning for thanks to Shreve's deft and evocative writing, all the testimonies merge together seamlessly at the end. The result is a touching, almost heart-breaking story touching on tones of atonement and moving on: how is it that one foolish mistake, one brief moment of misjudgment, can affect a life forever, tarnishing everything good that the person might have done? How do you live with a mistake of that magnitude? How do you move on, and is it even possible?

The characters are exceptionally well-written, each provoking strong feelings of emotion from the reader, whether it be sympathy, amusement, or even disgust. The testimony chapters of Mike Bordwin, a man torn between career professionalism and human weakness, and that of Ellen, the mother of one of the boys involved, are written exceptionally realistically. Particularly fun to read is the testimony of Sienna, the girl in the tape, a cunning and seductive student who reminds me of a modern-day version of the eponymous character of Vladimir Nabokov's Lolita.

My favourite part of the book, however, is the romance between Silas, one of the boys in the video tape, and Noelle, which is written with a heartbreaking purity and sweetness.

The book is not without its faults though. Towards the end, the mystery of who filmed the videotape is revealed but it feels contrived and slightly unrealistic, bringing up issues which could have been developed into another subplot but were instead rushed by without much elaboration. But this is a small blemish in an otherwise flawless book. Beautifully written and thought-provoking, Testimony is one of the best books I've read this year.