It’s a dangerous business: rereading books you loved first time round. I found myself with some time on my hands last week and so returned to The Hare With Amber Eyes, Edmund de Waal’s award winning family history, told through an elaborate collection of netsuke, which he inherited from his great uncle.
The book was published to fevered critical acclaim. There is evidence of this on the copy I bought last week. The inside and back covers are crammed with luminaries gushing superlatives. It is masterpiece, everyone said.
I agreed with them then, but, having taken a more leisurely second read, I’m not so sure. De Waal’s book is certainly original. It is certainly captivating in parts. But it’s too uneven to qualify in the exclusive category of masterpiece.
De Waal’s prose is best when it is spare, but it is often baroque.
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