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Jan
18
Book Review: The Unnamed by Joshua Ferris
2010 at 11am Posted by Rebecca Joines Schinsky
Published January 18, 2010 by Reagan Arthur (an imprint of Little, Brown & Hachette)
What I really want to do here is say that Joshua Ferris’s new novel The Unnamed is amazing. One of the best books of the year amazing. I want to tell you to just go buy it now and then come back so we can talk about it. But I suppose I should tell you more. So here goes. The Unnamed.
The first time it came, he realized he was powerless before it, that no matter how much will power he mustered, it would never be enough. He would just keep walking. He had to keep walking. It was so severe and indefatigable that even when his wife handcuffed him to their bed to keep him from leaving, even when he slept, his feet kept moving. He had to keep walking.
But Tim Farnsworth has been better for a few years now. He’s made partner at his Manhattan law firm Troyer, Barr, and he is preparing for a major trial in which he will defend a client who represents millions of dollars of revenue for the firm. Professionally, Tim is at the top of his game, and his colleagues seem to have finally forgotten about the walking. His personal life has also recovered, as his wife Jane and daughter Becka have begun to allow themselves to hope that the walking is gone for good, that the first time was the only time.
Then Tim finds himself forced out of the office building and into the street. Fighting the urge to walk, he hails a cab but finds himself forced to get out before reaching his destination. Then he starts walking and goes until he can’t go any more, until he wakes up on a bench near the East River and announces to himself, “It’s back.”
And this time, it’s back with a vengeance…..but Tim and Jane are prepared. They learned from the first time. They know what to expect. So Jane bundles Tim into his winter gear and gets out his pack filled with necessities, and reminds him to turn the GPS on the next time he leaves. They go to bed, and Jane wakes up in the middle of the night to discover he has left. She finds him asleep in the snow, exhausted but insistent that he can fight it, and he goes back to work the next day.
Then the phone calls begin. At all times of the day and night, whenever Tim wakes up after a walk, he calls Jane, who asks where he is and says she will come get him. It’s not easy, but it’s what she signed up for. Whether she knew it or not, this is part of the “for better or for worse, in sickness and in health” promise she made. And Jane takes those vows seriously. So through the professional uncertainty and the walking and the endless string of doctors and specialists and holistic healers who have no idea what is causing the walking, Jane stands by Tim.
The Unnamed is about Tim’s struggle to conquer this uncontrollable walking that he is convinced comes from something in his body. He cannot abide the idea that it could be mental or psychological, and with no medical evidence either way—every test he’s had has been inconclusive—he begins to develop his own theory about it. But not knowing what this thing is or why it makes him walk or how to fight it proves more difficult than it was the last time. And life begins to crumble.
On one level, The Unnamed is about marriage and commitment and what it really means for two people to stand by each other through unknowable challenges. Writing in close third person, Ferris taps into Tim’s psyche to explore how he makes sense of the unexplainable phenomenon affecting him, and he presents Jane’s inner conflict between devotion to her husband and ever-present temptation to start walking, herself.
But all this walking begs the question of what Tim might be walking away from and why, despite his determination to conquer the physical with the mental, he cannot resist the urge to move, to make life purely physical, and that’s where the heart of this book lies. Sure, Tim believes this problem has a physical cause, but not one of the myriad tests has indicated this is really the case, and the fact that some of Tim’s symptoms have been controlled with psychoactive medication certainly calls his judgment about his illness into question.
The Unnamed is heartbreaking, bleak, and surprisingly beautiful. Ferris’s writing is sere, vividly descriptive in its spareness, and compulsively readable. I cannot find enough superlatives to describe this unforgettable book, which will, without question, be among the best of 2010. So do yourself a favor and pick up a copy. You won’t regret it, and you certainly won’t forget it. 5 out of 5.
For more information about The Unnamed, visit the official website, enjoy this video of David Sedaris interviewing Joshua Ferris, and check out this interview with Ferris’s editor.
Hey, FTC: I received a copy of this book from the publisher.
No related posts.
I see you’ve found your 2010 book of the year, huh?
The Unnamed sounds like a great book and I think *fingers crossed* that I’ve just won a copy of it. You’re having a great reading year so far.
I moved this up in my TBR pile after I saw you and Trish tweeting about it. I can’t wait to read it now.
I hope I have enough time to fit this in this month!
This may be my next Kindle purchase – I was going to read it anyway (and it’s nice not to wait for paperbacks), but your enthusiasm is contagious. Thanks for the excellent review!
It’s not nice to tempt me like this.
I was doubtful of this book when I saw the EW review, which was mediocre at best. But you have convinced me otherwise. They aren’t always right, after all. Anyone who earns their way onto the panty-throwing list after one book can’t be all bad.
This review makes me wish I had this rightnow. Or perhaps 5 minutes ago. Or maybe a week or few ago. Yes. Onto the wish list with it!
You have definitely convinced me!
Oh alright … I’ll try and get a copy. Jeez.
I have been seeing this mentioned on twitter and am intrigued. I hope to get to it very soon! Thanks for the great review. Some of the ones on Amazon were so so but I think I want to read this
I keep seeing reviews of this book but I think you have me finally convinced to add to TBR!
I went on-line and bought it because of your review. Better be good.
Thanx for this -
I just downloaded a copy (- yeah, I love books, but I tend to listen to most of my books cuz I spend so much time either walking or in the car) …
Anyway, Audible’s version is read by the author – and the first few chapters ARE compelling!!!
Could be an interesting for a book group – perhaps for insight into ways each of us gets taken over by our own obsessions?
Want.
That is all.
This does sound amazing. Thanks for the great review!
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I’m so glad you liked it as much as I did! I promise to take an extra pair of panties ot his signing tonight!
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When I read Joshua Ferris’s first book, ‘And Then We Came to the End’ i knew he was an incredibly talented writer. But having just finished ‘The Unnamed’ I’m blown away. Who knew such a simple implausible idea could be “heartbreaking, bleak, and surprisingly beautiful” as you so accurately described this wonder of a book.
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I didn’t realize he had a new book out. I read his first book, then we came to the end a couple of years back and absolutely loved it. Can’t wait to read the Unnamed.
Ms Ulat Buku´s last [type] ..The Walking Dead