The Natural by Bernard Malamud The fourth superb novel by an amazing author that I am grateful that I could read- 11 out of 10

 The Natural by Bernard Malamud


The fourth superb novel by an amazing author that I am grateful that I could read- 11 out of 10

 

This is the fourth masterpiece by Bernard Malamud that I enjoy.

What a fabulous writer, that I knew nothing about only a few months ago.

I can only hope that I Stumble Upon Happiness again by finding writers that are as good as Bernard Malamud.

The strange thing is that I had doubts regarding The Natural, concerning first of all the subject of the novel.

In subsidiary, there was probably a worry that after a series of three fantastic works, the fourth might not be on the same level.

But the fact that The Natural deals with baseball was the main drawback in my perspective, as a man with no knowledge of the game.

-          How will I cope with a work that talks about third base, strike and so on?

There was a misfire, as I started reading under the worst auspices.

The book was abandoned after about 30 pages, luckily for another marvelous novel- Dubin’s Lives, which is delightful.

Utterly convinced by Dubin’s Lives I started again to engage with The Natural and what a good decision that was!

I did not learn anything about baseball to understand how the ball is supposed to move and why, who winds and for what reason.

But the novel is so great that I did not need to go to third base and get the meaning of it and lived the tension with maximum intensity.

Roy Hobbs is the hero of the book and he is played by Robert Redford in the movie adaptation that I would like to see.

He comes from a small town and wants to make it in the Big League, for which he appears to have all that is needed.

On the train that takes Roy to Chicago he meets a good looking woman that favors a former baseball star.

That is until The Natural proves his worth in an improvised practice, near the railway line, while the train is stopped.

Alas, when they reach the city and the mysterious femme fatale calls Roy to her room, instead of wild sex, we have…a gun shot.

-          That was extraordinary

As in the movies and elsewhere, you do not expect the main personage to be taken down after the very first act.

Yes, we have some stories that start with a hero telling his shenanigans from the deathbed or somewhere near.

But after so few pages it is shocking for this reader to find the hero shot.

The crazy woman did not kill Roy, but he has to make a comeback- there is a second and third chapter after all- at the age of 34.

The Natural becomes a magnificent player and the fate of his new team; The Knights depend almost exclusively on his skill.

That does not happen on the first day or week, and there is a fight for the place in the team which adds to the suspense.

After the lunatic female gunner, two strong female characters introduce themselves into the plot that has the reader gasping for breath.

-          Will the team win the series?

-          Can The Natural pull it off?

-          And what about his personal life?

This is the fourth miraculous book by Bernard Malamud that I enjoy thoroughly.

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