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Bound in buckram, blocked with a design by Peter Suart. Set in Ehrhardt. Frontispiece and 12 full-page colour illustrations by Peter Suart. 10" x 7", 704 pages.
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Fifth Business Ramsay is a man twice born, a man who has returned from the hell of the battle-grave at Passchendaele in World War I decorated with the Victoria Cross and destined to be caught in a no man's land where memory, history, and myth collide. As Ramsay tells his story, it begins to seem that from boyhood, he has exerted a perhaps mystical, perhaps pernicious, influence on those around him. His apparently innocent involvement in such innocuous events as the throwing of a snowball or the teaching of card tricks to a small boy in the end prove neither innocent nor innocuous. Fifth Business stands alone as a remarkable story told by a rational man who discovers that the marvelous is only another aspect of the real. The Manticore Around a mysterious death is woven a glittering, fantastical, cunningly contrived trilogy of novels. Luring the reader down labyrinthine tunnels of myth, history and magic, THE DEPTFORD TRILOGY provides an exhilarating antidote to a world from where 'the fear and dread and splendour of wonder have been banished'. World of Wonders This is the third novel in Davies's major work, The Deptford Trilogy. This novel tells the life story of the unfortunate boy introduced in The Fifth Business, who was spirited away from his Canadian home by one of the members of a traveling side show, the Wanless World of Wonders.… (more)
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LibraryThing member dmsteyn
Fifth Business
Fifth Business follows the life of Dunstan Ramsay from childhood in Deptford, Canada, through the Great War, and up till his old age as a professor at a Toronto university. Davies has created an interesting if not particularly likeable character in Ramsay, who will also play a role in
Ramsay himself is the ‘fifth business’ of the title: a character in a play who is not one of the main characters, but without whom the play could not function (Horatio in Hamlet springs to mind). Ramsay is side-lined throughout the novel, despite his interesting life and rare abilities: Boy keeps on taking centre-stage. To elaborate on Ramsay: he loses a leg in the War, and becomes a hagiographer (in the older, literal sense: he writes biographies of the saints). He also has an important relationship with another character that will later play an important role: Paul Dempster, whom Ramsay introduces to conjuring tricks and other magical paraphernalia.
The novel was quite satisfying as the first part of a trilogy: it introduced the characters, but also set the stage for the intrigue of the later novels. My only complaint would be the number of coincidental encounters in the book, which seemed much too good to be true.
The Manticore
This second novel in the trilogy is narrated by Boy Staunton’s son, David. After his father’s death, David, who has become a famous criminal lawyer in Canada, decides to go see an analyst in Switzerland because of his deteriorating mental health. He ends up with a female Jungian analyst, who uses different techniques, including regression and dream interpretation, to help him come to terms with his problems. These also serve as a useful device to tell David’s story.
David’s relation of events, although personal, helps to throw a light on the same events that Ramsay’s story covered, but giving different emphases. We find out more about the events surrounding Boy’s death, but David’s story is mostly concerned with his own recovery. It is only at the end, when he runs into Ramsay (again, a bit coincidentally) that the story starts to come full circle. Ramsay is now living in Switzerland with Paul Dempster, who has become the world-famous magician, Magnus Eisengrim. How Paul became Eisengrim is the focus of the next book, however.
I really enjoyed this book, which is very different from the first book. David’s psycho-analysis is fascinating, as is his story. I thought that the end came a bit suddenly, but perhaps that is fitting for a book dealing with sudden breakthroughs in one’s psyche. The ‘manticore’ of the title is David himself, who has dreams with definite mythological undertones. In fact, these mythological and religious undertones may be the most enjoyable part of Davies’s writing. He has a knack for making intelligent use of subtexts, and for making the reader feel intelligent as well. Very enjoyable!
World of Wonders
In this last part of the Deptford Trilogy, Davies has Paul Dempster, aka Magnus Eisengrim, relate the story of his life. He is busy filming the life of a famous 19th-century conjuror, and relates his own story to Ramsay and the film crew (well, the famous director and a few others). Dempster describes being abducted by the magician of a travelling sideshow (the World of Wonders of the title), and how he eventually gained his freedom and, later, fame.
Dempster’s life story is, in many senses, quite harrowing. For instance, Willard, the show magician, rapes him repeatedly. Davies does not pull punches in relating these disturbing aspects of his story, though he does not describe them in an egregious fashion. Ramsay is again the narrator, and he and the film crew have interesting conversations concerning the nature of evil, the Devil, and other pertinent topics. These conversations were quite an interesting way of conveying the story – reminiscent of older books, like Thomas Love Peacock’s “novels”, which I only know by reputation.
Davies brings the trilogy to a satisfying, if enigmatic close, without wrapping everything up like a neat present. There is a sinister undertone to some of the events of the novel – though, ironically, Boy Staunton’s death is actually one of the less-sinister parts of the book. Davies is obviously a very philosophical writer, yet he retains the necessary sleight of hand that a plot requires. “Sleight of hand” is quite an apt term, as the trilogy, concerned with magic throughout, is itself a wonderfully staged piece of entertainment. Despite being overly long for a straight read-through (which is what I did), the trilogy remains satisfying throughout, which is a rare distinction. Enjoyable, enchanting, enhancing.
Fifth Business follows the life of Dunstan Ramsay from childhood in Deptford, Canada, through the Great War, and up till his old age as a professor at a Toronto university. Davies has created an interesting if not particularly likeable character in Ramsay, who will also play a role in
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the later books. The story begins with Ramsay’s retelling of a formative event in his childhood which involved his friend, Boy Staunton, and how it reverberated throughout their lives. Boy will play a central role in the rest of the trilogy; his death (not much of a spoiler: my edition reveals this on the back page) is the fulcrum on which it turns.Ramsay himself is the ‘fifth business’ of the title: a character in a play who is not one of the main characters, but without whom the play could not function (Horatio in Hamlet springs to mind). Ramsay is side-lined throughout the novel, despite his interesting life and rare abilities: Boy keeps on taking centre-stage. To elaborate on Ramsay: he loses a leg in the War, and becomes a hagiographer (in the older, literal sense: he writes biographies of the saints). He also has an important relationship with another character that will later play an important role: Paul Dempster, whom Ramsay introduces to conjuring tricks and other magical paraphernalia.
The novel was quite satisfying as the first part of a trilogy: it introduced the characters, but also set the stage for the intrigue of the later novels. My only complaint would be the number of coincidental encounters in the book, which seemed much too good to be true.
The Manticore
This second novel in the trilogy is narrated by Boy Staunton’s son, David. After his father’s death, David, who has become a famous criminal lawyer in Canada, decides to go see an analyst in Switzerland because of his deteriorating mental health. He ends up with a female Jungian analyst, who uses different techniques, including regression and dream interpretation, to help him come to terms with his problems. These also serve as a useful device to tell David’s story.
David’s relation of events, although personal, helps to throw a light on the same events that Ramsay’s story covered, but giving different emphases. We find out more about the events surrounding Boy’s death, but David’s story is mostly concerned with his own recovery. It is only at the end, when he runs into Ramsay (again, a bit coincidentally) that the story starts to come full circle. Ramsay is now living in Switzerland with Paul Dempster, who has become the world-famous magician, Magnus Eisengrim. How Paul became Eisengrim is the focus of the next book, however.
I really enjoyed this book, which is very different from the first book. David’s psycho-analysis is fascinating, as is his story. I thought that the end came a bit suddenly, but perhaps that is fitting for a book dealing with sudden breakthroughs in one’s psyche. The ‘manticore’ of the title is David himself, who has dreams with definite mythological undertones. In fact, these mythological and religious undertones may be the most enjoyable part of Davies’s writing. He has a knack for making intelligent use of subtexts, and for making the reader feel intelligent as well. Very enjoyable!
World of Wonders
In this last part of the Deptford Trilogy, Davies has Paul Dempster, aka Magnus Eisengrim, relate the story of his life. He is busy filming the life of a famous 19th-century conjuror, and relates his own story to Ramsay and the film crew (well, the famous director and a few others). Dempster describes being abducted by the magician of a travelling sideshow (the World of Wonders of the title), and how he eventually gained his freedom and, later, fame.
Dempster’s life story is, in many senses, quite harrowing. For instance, Willard, the show magician, rapes him repeatedly. Davies does not pull punches in relating these disturbing aspects of his story, though he does not describe them in an egregious fashion. Ramsay is again the narrator, and he and the film crew have interesting conversations concerning the nature of evil, the Devil, and other pertinent topics. These conversations were quite an interesting way of conveying the story – reminiscent of older books, like Thomas Love Peacock’s “novels”, which I only know by reputation.
Davies brings the trilogy to a satisfying, if enigmatic close, without wrapping everything up like a neat present. There is a sinister undertone to some of the events of the novel – though, ironically, Boy Staunton’s death is actually one of the less-sinister parts of the book. Davies is obviously a very philosophical writer, yet he retains the necessary sleight of hand that a plot requires. “Sleight of hand” is quite an apt term, as the trilogy, concerned with magic throughout, is itself a wonderfully staged piece of entertainment. Despite being overly long for a straight read-through (which is what I did), the trilogy remains satisfying throughout, which is a rare distinction. Enjoyable, enchanting, enhancing.
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LibraryThing member zibilee
This trilogy of novels housed in one volume tells the story of the entanglements of three men whose fates are intertwined by one seemingly insignificant event in their small town of Deptford. The trilogy begins with Fifth Business, which tells the story of Dunstan Ramsay. When Percy "Boy" Staunton
It is really hard to do justice to this book, either in my summary or my opinions on it, because there was just such an all-encompassing depth and reach to this story. Though I have outlined the bare bones of the plot, what can't be described is the exact fullness of spirit and idea that this book contained. At times the story veered into the realm of dark magical realism, but that side of the narrative never felt fully explored. Instead, it just teetered on the edge of the fantastical and mysterious. Between the stories of the three men of Deptford, Davies discourses on many other subjects as well: the differences between egoism and egotism, the strange role mythology plays in everyday life, and the chaos that surrounds a life of charisma and magnetism. It is not a simple trick, and I found that in order to balance some of these heavy philosophies, at times the characters and the story suffered. It was not really a straight narrative because much of his speculations had the effect of wandering away from the main plot and going off into other tangents. Not that I didn't appreciate that, but it made the book a much more dense and involved read, and it was not really what I had been expecting.
At times I felt that much of the plot was just a wrapper for certain ideas that the author wished to express. It was almost like the two, the philosophy and the narrative, existed entirely separately and the plot seemed to provide a convenient backdrop for some of the author's more slippery ideas. Much of the story held my interest, but there was something elusive about the way it was constructed, something that made me hold it at an arms length and examine it with a mixture of disdain and awe. It was an odd book that seemed to feed on it's own mythology and quiet pandemonium, and at times it was very unsettling.
The book had a long cast of characters and all walks of life were represented, from the perverted to the saintly, but most of them were supporting of the main five or six that the action settled around. I found it odd that I didn't seem to like any of the characters, and though I understood their motivations, I found that one of the reasons I could not get fully enveloped in the story was due to the distance that I felt for these people. Many were strange and unsettling, and some were just plain hostile and sadistic. Not the normal types of people I find amassed all together in one book, which I think speaks to the author's great capability for developing characters that stick with you whether you want them to or not. At times I questioned the humanness of the characters because they didn't react in typically human ways. I found most of them to be quite cold and just short of compassionate, and most of their softer emotions seemed at best poorly directed and misguided, with a few notable exceptions.
I find it hard to put my finger on my exact opinions on this book. While I think it was a brilliant book that juggled many themes, philosophies and ideas very well, I remained a bit separated from it and felt that there was an aspect of emotional squalidness and cynicism that encompassed it that I didn't want to examine too closely or be too involved with. All of these things seemed perfectly calculated by the author but left me a little uneasy. I think it spoke to a lot of the more base instincts in human beings and at times those truths were uncomfortable to look at. Davies is honest and succinct in his estimation of man, but at times I would have liked a bit more hope and a bit less harsh realism.
Although I found myself holding back from the book, I have to admit that the writing, atmosphere and complexities of the story were top notch, and I believe this to be a superior story. As far as the breakdown of the book goes, I would have to say that the first of the books, Fifth Business, was by far my favorite. I enjoyed the intricacies of Dunstan's story and felt that this first book held the most interest for me. The second book, The Manticore, was a lot less interesting but there were some really astute and penetrating sections that really hooked me in. The last book, World of Wonders, was a mixed bag. The story started off great and up until about halfway through I thought that it would be the best of the three. Later sections dealt with Paul's time in the theater among a travelling group of actors, and I felt that section dragged on too long and was less interesting than any of the other sections of the trilogy.
Although I struggled a bit with this book, and my interpretations of it, I think that overall it was very thought provoking and extremely well written. Davies has written two other trilogies and I will probably be taking a look at both of them sometime soon. If you are the type of reader who is not put off by some of the more abject aspects of human nature and are looking for a book with very deep character portrayals interspersed with some fairly complex ideology, I would reccommend this book to you. If you take the time with this book, you will find something indescribably impressive lurking within the pages.
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wraps a snowball around a rock and pitches in at Dunstan, it misses his target and hits the head of Mrs. Dempster, the minister's wife. The injury causes Mrs. Dempster to go into premature labor, and shortly after pushes her into madness. Although Dunstan feels incredibly guilty, Boy does not acknowledge his part in the incident. Dunstan goes on to war heroism and academic greatness, but cannot forget his part in the awful business with the snowball, and unable to forget it, he makes himself responsible for the woman who was so seriously impacted by the events of that day. Fifth Business is Dunstan's autobiographical letter detailing his life of unresolved guilt and hidden shame at the mess he believes himself to be responsible for. The second book, The Manticore, begins with Boy Staunton lying dead at the bottom of a lake with the fated rock from the prank hidden in his mouth. Now his grown son David is looking for answers to his father's death, which leads him to Switzerland for a course of psychoanalysis. What David uncovers sheds a new light on Boy and his unstoppable ambition, and the effects this has had on the people he loves, or claims to love. It seems that Boy thought himself at the center of the universe, with everyone around him only minor stars to aid his progress. But the question remains: Did Boy really die by his own hand, or was there another culprit? The last book, World of Wonders, focuses on the boy born to Mrs. Dempster, Paul, a strange lad that is unwittingly kidnapped by a magician and indoctrinated into circus life. Although Paul travels many unhappy years with the circus and becomes jaded and hard, he eventually reinvents himself as a foremost magician and illusionist with the help of a strange woman. But he never quite forgets the troubles he had in Deptford, or his enmity for Boy Staunton.These three stories weave in between each other to reveal the three vastly different men that were shaped by that horrible incident in Deptford, and tell a story studded with magic, humanism, and regret that will enrapture even the most guarded reader.It is really hard to do justice to this book, either in my summary or my opinions on it, because there was just such an all-encompassing depth and reach to this story. Though I have outlined the bare bones of the plot, what can't be described is the exact fullness of spirit and idea that this book contained. At times the story veered into the realm of dark magical realism, but that side of the narrative never felt fully explored. Instead, it just teetered on the edge of the fantastical and mysterious. Between the stories of the three men of Deptford, Davies discourses on many other subjects as well: the differences between egoism and egotism, the strange role mythology plays in everyday life, and the chaos that surrounds a life of charisma and magnetism. It is not a simple trick, and I found that in order to balance some of these heavy philosophies, at times the characters and the story suffered. It was not really a straight narrative because much of his speculations had the effect of wandering away from the main plot and going off into other tangents. Not that I didn't appreciate that, but it made the book a much more dense and involved read, and it was not really what I had been expecting.
At times I felt that much of the plot was just a wrapper for certain ideas that the author wished to express. It was almost like the two, the philosophy and the narrative, existed entirely separately and the plot seemed to provide a convenient backdrop for some of the author's more slippery ideas. Much of the story held my interest, but there was something elusive about the way it was constructed, something that made me hold it at an arms length and examine it with a mixture of disdain and awe. It was an odd book that seemed to feed on it's own mythology and quiet pandemonium, and at times it was very unsettling.
The book had a long cast of characters and all walks of life were represented, from the perverted to the saintly, but most of them were supporting of the main five or six that the action settled around. I found it odd that I didn't seem to like any of the characters, and though I understood their motivations, I found that one of the reasons I could not get fully enveloped in the story was due to the distance that I felt for these people. Many were strange and unsettling, and some were just plain hostile and sadistic. Not the normal types of people I find amassed all together in one book, which I think speaks to the author's great capability for developing characters that stick with you whether you want them to or not. At times I questioned the humanness of the characters because they didn't react in typically human ways. I found most of them to be quite cold and just short of compassionate, and most of their softer emotions seemed at best poorly directed and misguided, with a few notable exceptions.
I find it hard to put my finger on my exact opinions on this book. While I think it was a brilliant book that juggled many themes, philosophies and ideas very well, I remained a bit separated from it and felt that there was an aspect of emotional squalidness and cynicism that encompassed it that I didn't want to examine too closely or be too involved with. All of these things seemed perfectly calculated by the author but left me a little uneasy. I think it spoke to a lot of the more base instincts in human beings and at times those truths were uncomfortable to look at. Davies is honest and succinct in his estimation of man, but at times I would have liked a bit more hope and a bit less harsh realism.
Although I found myself holding back from the book, I have to admit that the writing, atmosphere and complexities of the story were top notch, and I believe this to be a superior story. As far as the breakdown of the book goes, I would have to say that the first of the books, Fifth Business, was by far my favorite. I enjoyed the intricacies of Dunstan's story and felt that this first book held the most interest for me. The second book, The Manticore, was a lot less interesting but there were some really astute and penetrating sections that really hooked me in. The last book, World of Wonders, was a mixed bag. The story started off great and up until about halfway through I thought that it would be the best of the three. Later sections dealt with Paul's time in the theater among a travelling group of actors, and I felt that section dragged on too long and was less interesting than any of the other sections of the trilogy.
Although I struggled a bit with this book, and my interpretations of it, I think that overall it was very thought provoking and extremely well written. Davies has written two other trilogies and I will probably be taking a look at both of them sometime soon. If you are the type of reader who is not put off by some of the more abject aspects of human nature and are looking for a book with very deep character portrayals interspersed with some fairly complex ideology, I would reccommend this book to you. If you take the time with this book, you will find something indescribably impressive lurking within the pages.
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LibraryThing member brenzi
The Deptford Trilogy consists of three books that center around the lives of former Deptford, Ontario residents Dunstan Ramsey, and his lifelong friend Boy Staunton, and Paul Dempster (Magnus Eisengrim). It begins in 2008 when Boy throws a snowball with a rock in it at Dunstan who ducks and the
Part two, "The Manticore" is a continuation of themes started in the first book. The narrator is David Staunton, son of Boy Staunton and the story is told through his psychoanalysis with Dr. Johanna VonHaller in Zurich, Switzerland, where he traveled after the death of his father. He is trying to discover who killed his father as well as who he really is. It started out slowly (much like psychoanalysis) but Davis' prose and suspense made it worth the effort.
The final segment of the trilogy is "World of Wonders" and is once again told by Dunstan Ramsey . He relates the story being told by Magnus Eisengrim, formerly Paul Dempster and we finally get some resolution to the question "Who killed Boy Staunton?" although it is open to interpretation. The book's title refers to the catnival that Eisengrim ran away to as a child and, in the end, the world view of the characters.
The three books together tell an absolutely fascinating story that make for a manic read. Forgiveness, redemption and coming of age themes are all prevalent throughout the saga. This book was hard to put down and the story is one that will stay with me for a long time.
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snowball hits pregnant Mary Dempster instead, who then delivers Paul prematurely, and suffers from mental illness from that point forward. This vehicle drives the narrative for the next 800 pages. "Fifth Business" is Book 1. I raced through this book as I couldn't stop reading it. It is told by Dunstan Ramsey, who describes his life in Deptford, WWI experiences, recovery from injury during the war, travels through Europe, and Latin America and his position as administrator/teacher at a boys' school in Toronto, as well as his experiences with magic. Beautiful prose and excellent story line.Part two, "The Manticore" is a continuation of themes started in the first book. The narrator is David Staunton, son of Boy Staunton and the story is told through his psychoanalysis with Dr. Johanna VonHaller in Zurich, Switzerland, where he traveled after the death of his father. He is trying to discover who killed his father as well as who he really is. It started out slowly (much like psychoanalysis) but Davis' prose and suspense made it worth the effort.
The final segment of the trilogy is "World of Wonders" and is once again told by Dunstan Ramsey . He relates the story being told by Magnus Eisengrim, formerly Paul Dempster and we finally get some resolution to the question "Who killed Boy Staunton?" although it is open to interpretation. The book's title refers to the catnival that Eisengrim ran away to as a child and, in the end, the world view of the characters.
The three books together tell an absolutely fascinating story that make for a manic read. Forgiveness, redemption and coming of age themes are all prevalent throughout the saga. This book was hard to put down and the story is one that will stay with me for a long time.
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LibraryThing member Gail.C.Bull
The Deptford Trilogy is my favourite book of all time. Davies weaves reality with myth, creating a world that feels both real and unreal at the same time and makes us question what we think we know about the world. All three books in the trilogy - Fifth Business, The Manticore, and World of Wonders
Fifth Business: Eight year old Dunstable Ramsey is having a dispute with his friend Boy Staunton when a frustrated Boy throws a stone-laden snowball at his friend's back. Ramsey ducks the snowball and it hits a heavily pregnant Mrs. Dempster in the head, distroying her mind, bringing about the premature birth of Paul Dempster, and forever altering the lives of Ramsey and Boy. This amazing novel traces the lives of these two men from small town Canada, to the killing fields of World War I, from the bawdy theatres of early 20th century South America, to business world of the burgeoning young city of Toronto and displays the reprecussions a single careless act can create.
The Manticore: This is the most cerebral of the three novels. Boy Staunton's son, David, has grown to manhood with a law degree, a love-hate relationship with his father, and a drinking problem. He also has a deep conviction that his father's accidental death was no accident. After creating a scene and breaking down in open court, he is convinced to try a new cure for alcoholism in Europe which includes Jungian psychotherapy. A strangely soulful tale about the distructive forces within a family, making peace with the past, and forgiving our parents for not being the people we wish they were.
World of Wonders: Davies fills in the missing years of the life of Paul Dempster and discribes his self-made metamorphosis from a troubled boy into the theatrical genius known as Magnus Eisengrim. The most colourful and disturbing book of the trilogy, it is a lesson in becoming who we chose to be and embracing life as it is, rather than as we wish it was.
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- can be read indepentantly but when read as a trilogy the pieces slide together and create an even fuller and more dramatic tale.Fifth Business: Eight year old Dunstable Ramsey is having a dispute with his friend Boy Staunton when a frustrated Boy throws a stone-laden snowball at his friend's back. Ramsey ducks the snowball and it hits a heavily pregnant Mrs. Dempster in the head, distroying her mind, bringing about the premature birth of Paul Dempster, and forever altering the lives of Ramsey and Boy. This amazing novel traces the lives of these two men from small town Canada, to the killing fields of World War I, from the bawdy theatres of early 20th century South America, to business world of the burgeoning young city of Toronto and displays the reprecussions a single careless act can create.
The Manticore: This is the most cerebral of the three novels. Boy Staunton's son, David, has grown to manhood with a law degree, a love-hate relationship with his father, and a drinking problem. He also has a deep conviction that his father's accidental death was no accident. After creating a scene and breaking down in open court, he is convinced to try a new cure for alcoholism in Europe which includes Jungian psychotherapy. A strangely soulful tale about the distructive forces within a family, making peace with the past, and forgiving our parents for not being the people we wish they were.
World of Wonders: Davies fills in the missing years of the life of Paul Dempster and discribes his self-made metamorphosis from a troubled boy into the theatrical genius known as Magnus Eisengrim. The most colourful and disturbing book of the trilogy, it is a lesson in becoming who we chose to be and embracing life as it is, rather than as we wish it was.
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LibraryThing member ehines
One of my very favorites and I quite say why--as with many of my favorite novels. Davies was a bigger believer in Jung than I am, but he certainly makes a good case for his thinking . . . and he certainly understands people really well--their petty motives for doing big things, for instance. I read
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this just as I moved to the northern part of the US, and I heard a lot of strong echoes of the place where I lived in the rural and urban Canada depicted here, so maybe I'm a bit prone to overrating these novels, but I urge you to dip in and see for yourself. Davies was a master. Show Less
LibraryThing member KWHirsh
Amazing - I gave the triology to several people for Christmas! And to know that there is more of his work to be read is exhilarating!
LibraryThing member overthemoon
Book 1: Fifth Business, the story of Dunstan Ramsay
Book 2: The Manticore: the story of Boy Staunton's son
Book 3: The World of Wonders: the story of Magnus Eisengrim.
All the characters intertwined; eventful and surprising, remarkably well written and hardly a dull moment; I always felt totally
Book 2: The Manticore: the story of Boy Staunton's son
Book 3: The World of Wonders: the story of Magnus Eisengrim.
All the characters intertwined; eventful and surprising, remarkably well written and hardly a dull moment; I always felt totally
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involved. Show Less
LibraryThing member Medellia
Review for Fifth Business:
Wow, what a wonderful book. Besides the well-drawn, strangely compelling characters and the lovely atmosphere, I loved the philosophy behind it. Maybe it's just because Davies seems to be putting into words the same sorts of things I subscribe to but can't put my finger
Wow, what a wonderful book. Besides the well-drawn, strangely compelling characters and the lovely atmosphere, I loved the philosophy behind it. Maybe it's just because Davies seems to be putting into words the same sorts of things I subscribe to but can't put my finger
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on. Whatever the case, the idea of something being not "literally true" but "psychologically true" is something that makes a great deal of sense to me. I love symbols and archetypes, and this book has them in spades. Read it! Show Less
LibraryThing member -Eva-
Fifth Business:
Dunstan Ramsay writes a letter to the headmaster on his retirement, outlining the highlights of his life and friendships and how they affected him and the world around him. This is such an involved tale with twists that, albeit sometimes improbable, work because the narrative is so
The Manticore:
After Boy Staunton's mysterious death, his son has a psychotic episode and decides to retire to Zurich to seek out the services of Johanna Von Haller, a prominent Jungian psychoanalyst. What an unexpectedly engaging story; if you had tried to sell me a story of one year of Jungian analysis via the patient's journal, I would have turned you down, but this is surprisingly readable. So, the format is a little bit heavy-handed and I would have preferred that the theories were presented in a more subtle way, but it's not too bad. Although David Staunton isn't as intriguing a character as Dunstan Ramsay, he presents a new angle to Ramsay's story in the Fifth Business, which adds a lot to the trilogy's overall arc. I am very excited to continue on with World of Wonders to get (from what I understand) yet another angle on this peculiar story.
Dunstan Ramsay writes a letter to the headmaster on his retirement, outlining the highlights of his life and friendships and how they affected him and the world around him. This is such an involved tale with twists that, albeit sometimes improbable, work because the narrative is so
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imaginative and have a near-mythological quality. It reminds me a little of John Irving's writing - it too has a lore-like tone to it. Although I struggled a little with the language in the beginning (plus I read a translation), I soon understood the impact the voice makes on the story and our view of Dunstan. I am very excited to continue reading the trilogy as I have been promised further insight and different views of these characters.The Manticore:
After Boy Staunton's mysterious death, his son has a psychotic episode and decides to retire to Zurich to seek out the services of Johanna Von Haller, a prominent Jungian psychoanalyst. What an unexpectedly engaging story; if you had tried to sell me a story of one year of Jungian analysis via the patient's journal, I would have turned you down, but this is surprisingly readable. So, the format is a little bit heavy-handed and I would have preferred that the theories were presented in a more subtle way, but it's not too bad. Although David Staunton isn't as intriguing a character as Dunstan Ramsay, he presents a new angle to Ramsay's story in the Fifth Business, which adds a lot to the trilogy's overall arc. I am very excited to continue on with World of Wonders to get (from what I understand) yet another angle on this peculiar story.
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LibraryThing member chrisblocker
The Deptford Trilogy is comprised of three books. (Go figure!) They are Fifth Business, The Manticore, and World of Wonders. This is my first outing with the author, Robertson Davies, but apparently he was big on trilogies. He wrote all of his novels as part of a cycle comprised of three books. The
Generally, I do not read multi-volume works (I want the credit for having read each book after all), but in the case of Davies, it seemed appropriate. From the moment I first heard of this book, I thought of The Deptford Trilogy as one complete novel. And maybe that's a mistake, because while the three novels that make up this trilogy tell one complete story, each is done in such a differing manner that thoughts and opinions on each novel vary widely. So let's briefly take a look at each novel...
Fifth Business is superb. Davies created some wonderful characters and placed them in a story that is always moving. This first one is narrated by Dunstan Ramsay, a character who is close to the story and grows with it. Overall, the pace is great, though it drags a little in the second half. So much happens in this first novel. Other than the lack of a fully satisfying conclusion, Fifth Business easily stands on its own as a novel.
The second novel, The Manticore, slows everything down. The narrative switches to a character on the fringe of the story, the son of Boy Staunton. David Staunton, a tiresome attorney, relays the details of his life to his therapist. Doesn't sound that exciting, does it? It's not. Largely, this second book is not needed for the larger story. Sure, it adds some questions about the subjectivity of Ramsay's story, and gives the reader a different perspective. As David is just a priggish bore, however, The Manticore lacks the drive of the first novel.
World of Wonders returns the narrative to Ramsay, but as a channel through which Paul Dempster tells his story. This trilogy is all about the relationship between Dunstan, Boy, and Dempster, so it's nice that it returns to focus on these three in the third book. This final volume is not as riveting as the first, but it adds some dimension to it in providing a perspective previously unseen. World of Wonders is a satisfying conclusion to a story that has its high points and low points.
Looking at The Deptford Trilogy as a whole, what's startling to me looking back is the simplicity of the story. After over 800 pages, I realize this story is really all about the snowball that is thrown on page 2. Sure, it's also a story about myth, madness, and magic, but it's all wrapped up in that snow-covered stone. That single toss of a snowball has a dramatic effect on these characters, and Davies does a fabulous job of allowing that one act to haunt the rest of the story. This is an excellent display of storytelling. I will assuredly have a go at another of Davies’ trilogies, though whether I read it as one volume or as three has yet to be decided.
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Deptford Trilogy, finished in 1975, was his second.Generally, I do not read multi-volume works (I want the credit for having read each book after all), but in the case of Davies, it seemed appropriate. From the moment I first heard of this book, I thought of The Deptford Trilogy as one complete novel. And maybe that's a mistake, because while the three novels that make up this trilogy tell one complete story, each is done in such a differing manner that thoughts and opinions on each novel vary widely. So let's briefly take a look at each novel...
Fifth Business is superb. Davies created some wonderful characters and placed them in a story that is always moving. This first one is narrated by Dunstan Ramsay, a character who is close to the story and grows with it. Overall, the pace is great, though it drags a little in the second half. So much happens in this first novel. Other than the lack of a fully satisfying conclusion, Fifth Business easily stands on its own as a novel.
The second novel, The Manticore, slows everything down. The narrative switches to a character on the fringe of the story, the son of Boy Staunton. David Staunton, a tiresome attorney, relays the details of his life to his therapist. Doesn't sound that exciting, does it? It's not. Largely, this second book is not needed for the larger story. Sure, it adds some questions about the subjectivity of Ramsay's story, and gives the reader a different perspective. As David is just a priggish bore, however, The Manticore lacks the drive of the first novel.
World of Wonders returns the narrative to Ramsay, but as a channel through which Paul Dempster tells his story. This trilogy is all about the relationship between Dunstan, Boy, and Dempster, so it's nice that it returns to focus on these three in the third book. This final volume is not as riveting as the first, but it adds some dimension to it in providing a perspective previously unseen. World of Wonders is a satisfying conclusion to a story that has its high points and low points.
Looking at The Deptford Trilogy as a whole, what's startling to me looking back is the simplicity of the story. After over 800 pages, I realize this story is really all about the snowball that is thrown on page 2. Sure, it's also a story about myth, madness, and magic, but it's all wrapped up in that snow-covered stone. That single toss of a snowball has a dramatic effect on these characters, and Davies does a fabulous job of allowing that one act to haunt the rest of the story. This is an excellent display of storytelling. I will assuredly have a go at another of Davies’ trilogies, though whether I read it as one volume or as three has yet to be decided.
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LibraryThing member isabelx
I had distinct feelings of déjà-vu at times while reading the first two books of this trilogy, so maybe I have read my parents' copy. If so it must have been a very long time ago, as I didn't remember any specifics of the story.
From rural Canada in the early twentieth century, through both
In "Fifth Business", Dunstan Ramsey, a recently retired teacher, writes a letter to the headmaster of the school he taught at, describing the way his life has been affected by three people he first knew as a child in the Canadian village of Deptford. They are millionaire businessman and politician Boy Staunton, the life-long best friend he never really liked, Mrs. Dempster the older woman he is linked to by feelings of guilt and responsibility and her son Paul Dempster, ten years his junior, whom he teaches conjuring tricks as a small boy and meets under unexpected circumstances many years later.
In the first book, Ramsey commented that it was their children who were most badly affected by the disintegration of Boy and Leola's marriage, and in "The Manticore" we find out the truth of that statement. Their son David tells a Jungian analyst about his life-story and his relationship with his family, while undergoing therapy in Zurich after the mysterious death of his father.
In "World of Wonders", Paul Dempster tells his story over the course of several meals to a group of old friends and film-makers, and by the end we finally understand the riddle of the Brazen Head's answer: "He was killed by the usual cabal: by himself, first of all; by the woman he knew; by the woman he didn't know; by the man who granted his innermost wish; and by the inevitable fifth, who was keeper of his conscience and keeper of the stone."
From rural Canada in the early twentieth century, through both
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world wars, life in travelling fairs and magic shows in North America and Europe, to a castle in Switzerland in the early 1970s, this story is told from several different points of view. I loved it all except for the part of the third book concerning life in a British theatre company in London and on tour in Canada, which came as a bit of a let-down after the magical qualities of the rest of the story.In "Fifth Business", Dunstan Ramsey, a recently retired teacher, writes a letter to the headmaster of the school he taught at, describing the way his life has been affected by three people he first knew as a child in the Canadian village of Deptford. They are millionaire businessman and politician Boy Staunton, the life-long best friend he never really liked, Mrs. Dempster the older woman he is linked to by feelings of guilt and responsibility and her son Paul Dempster, ten years his junior, whom he teaches conjuring tricks as a small boy and meets under unexpected circumstances many years later.
In the first book, Ramsey commented that it was their children who were most badly affected by the disintegration of Boy and Leola's marriage, and in "The Manticore" we find out the truth of that statement. Their son David tells a Jungian analyst about his life-story and his relationship with his family, while undergoing therapy in Zurich after the mysterious death of his father.
In "World of Wonders", Paul Dempster tells his story over the course of several meals to a group of old friends and film-makers, and by the end we finally understand the riddle of the Brazen Head's answer: "He was killed by the usual cabal: by himself, first of all; by the woman he knew; by the woman he didn't know; by the man who granted his innermost wish; and by the inevitable fifth, who was keeper of his conscience and keeper of the stone."
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LibraryThing member tikitu-reviews
Taken all three in sequence, the style wears a bit thin. Individually the first and third are the strongest, while the second could almost be skipped entirely.
The two most sympathetic characters (Ramsey, the narrator of the first novel, and Liesl, in whose mansion most of the third takes place as a
That same wisdom informs the style of the first and third novels, both of which are narrated by Ramsey. Although in the third several other characters tell stories, their voices are palpably filtered through Ramsey's on their way to the frame story. It's this that makes the style somewhat wearing, since in the second novel we see that Ramsey's style seems to be Davies' own -- the narrator is a very different sort of person but has a suspiciously similar voice.
That's basically my review. The first of the three is worth reading, if you like aged-and-saintly mentor/guru figures shaking their heads at their youthful follies (I'm not being snarky, I happen to indeed like the trope but not everyone will). If you try it and don't love it then don't bother with the other two, and if you do go on, don't start into the next without refreshing your palate with something different in between.
There's a funny story attached to the book though, which isn't strictly speaking review material but which I'd like to share. It's the reason I read it for a second time, despite the somewhat lukewarm reaction I've written about above.
It happened like this: I first read the trilogy while staying with friends of my parents for a long weekend. It clocks in at over 800 pages, and as the weekend drew to a close I realised that I was going to have difficulty finishing it before we left, so I put in a late night and raced to the last page. With the result that after leaving I had only the faintest idea left of the content of the last book, and no memory whatsoever of the style. In typical fashion, I also forgot both title and author as soon as I got home.
So since then (I guess ten years ago) I've wanted to reread it, just to see if it was any good or if devouring it so frantically was just a waste of my time. But with neither title nor author I could never find it (AbeBooks have a BookSleuth service where volunteers track down books from whatever memories you have of plot and whatever, but I couldn't even put together a precis that I thought somebody might be able to recognise). Until I stumbled upon it in a secondhand book store, and immediately recognised the manticore on the cover.
So, ten years later, I read it again. I might go back to it before another ten years goes by, but I won't be rushing to it.
The two most sympathetic characters (Ramsey, the narrator of the first novel, and Liesl, in whose mansion most of the third takes place as a
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series of stories told by various characters) are so wise as to be almost flawless, which interferes with the credibility somewhat. This is supposed to be wisdom born of age and hard experience, and of hindsight, but what it comes down to is Davies wanting an eloquent mouthpiece to convince us of his psychological analyses.That same wisdom informs the style of the first and third novels, both of which are narrated by Ramsey. Although in the third several other characters tell stories, their voices are palpably filtered through Ramsey's on their way to the frame story. It's this that makes the style somewhat wearing, since in the second novel we see that Ramsey's style seems to be Davies' own -- the narrator is a very different sort of person but has a suspiciously similar voice.
That's basically my review. The first of the three is worth reading, if you like aged-and-saintly mentor/guru figures shaking their heads at their youthful follies (I'm not being snarky, I happen to indeed like the trope but not everyone will). If you try it and don't love it then don't bother with the other two, and if you do go on, don't start into the next without refreshing your palate with something different in between.
There's a funny story attached to the book though, which isn't strictly speaking review material but which I'd like to share. It's the reason I read it for a second time, despite the somewhat lukewarm reaction I've written about above.
It happened like this: I first read the trilogy while staying with friends of my parents for a long weekend. It clocks in at over 800 pages, and as the weekend drew to a close I realised that I was going to have difficulty finishing it before we left, so I put in a late night and raced to the last page. With the result that after leaving I had only the faintest idea left of the content of the last book, and no memory whatsoever of the style. In typical fashion, I also forgot both title and author as soon as I got home.
So since then (I guess ten years ago) I've wanted to reread it, just to see if it was any good or if devouring it so frantically was just a waste of my time. But with neither title nor author I could never find it (AbeBooks have a BookSleuth service where volunteers track down books from whatever memories you have of plot and whatever, but I couldn't even put together a precis that I thought somebody might be able to recognise). Until I stumbled upon it in a secondhand book store, and immediately recognised the manticore on the cover.
So, ten years later, I read it again. I might go back to it before another ten years goes by, but I won't be rushing to it.
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LibraryThing member iayork
Read the Fifth Bussiness, but skip the rest: If you ask me to rank each part of this trilogy seperately, i would give the Fifth Business a 5 Star, The Manticore a 2 star and World of Wonders simply one star. Davies' obsession with Jung makes Manticore rather pretencious and unbearably monotonous to
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read. For the case of World of Wonders, its creation and value, in my opinion, might only rest on the romantic idea of the completion of a triology, which is a thing that Davies loves to do but failes to do well. Show Less
LibraryThing member Ibreak4books
good read, great language. The second novella in this trilogy, the Manatee, is a tour de force. Who could take a session with a therapist and make it interesting to someone besides the person looking at his navel? I wish more books like this were being written.
LibraryThing member lucybrown
I've only read the 1st so will wait to review
LibraryThing member jwhenderson
Fifth Business is the first installment of the Deptford Trilogy by Davies and it is the story of the life of the narrator, Dunstan Ramsay. The entire story is told in the form of a letter written by Ramsay on his retirement from teaching at Colborne College, addressed to the school Headmaster. The
Davies discusses several themes in the novel, including the difference between materialism and spirituality. He has also created a sort of bildungsroman in the narrative of Dunstable 'Dunstan' Ramsay, who lives a life dedicated to teaching (history in a boys' school) and studying the lives of saints, becoming a hagiographer of some note. Significantly, Davies, then being an avid student of Carl Jung's ideas, deploys them in Fifth Business. Characters are clear examples of Jungian archetypes and events demonstrate Jung's idea of synchronicity. The stone thrown at Ramsay when he was a child reappears decades later in a scandalous suicide or murder. This along with the impetus in Ramsay's life of three "miracles" become the mainstays of the plot line. Finally, it is all held together by Davies attention to detail, his characterization and above all his ability to tell a good story. I expect to return to finish the Deptford Trilogy sooner rather than later.
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book's title was explained by the author as a theatrical term, a character essential to the action but not a principal actor. This is made explicit in the focus of much the action on others, including Percy Boyd 'Boy' Staunton and his wife Leola, and Mrs. Dempster and her son Paul; all of whom influence and are influenced by the life of the narrator.Davies discusses several themes in the novel, including the difference between materialism and spirituality. He has also created a sort of bildungsroman in the narrative of Dunstable 'Dunstan' Ramsay, who lives a life dedicated to teaching (history in a boys' school) and studying the lives of saints, becoming a hagiographer of some note. Significantly, Davies, then being an avid student of Carl Jung's ideas, deploys them in Fifth Business. Characters are clear examples of Jungian archetypes and events demonstrate Jung's idea of synchronicity. The stone thrown at Ramsay when he was a child reappears decades later in a scandalous suicide or murder. This along with the impetus in Ramsay's life of three "miracles" become the mainstays of the plot line. Finally, it is all held together by Davies attention to detail, his characterization and above all his ability to tell a good story. I expect to return to finish the Deptford Trilogy sooner rather than later.
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LibraryThing member thorold
My first experience of Robertson Davies: very impressive. A bit like a less flashy version of Anthony Burgess: the author's games with myth, Jung, and the nature of stories are all buried within a conventional narrative framework that would be strong enough to carry any reader along by itself. Just
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occasionally there's a whiff of the seminar room, but Davies protects himself from getting too academic by sending up his pedantic narrator, Ramsay. Show Less
LibraryThing member SherryKaraoke
Originally published as three separate novels - Fifth Business - The Manticore - World of Wonders. I first read a short excerpt of this on NPR and fell in love with it. I just had to get it. I was not disappointed! Just a great epic of the Twentieth Century.
LibraryThing member NellieMc
Robertson Davies is the best unknown fiction writer out there. His books have it all -- they' superbly written, havelayer after layer of complexity, stories that keep you enticed. This is still his best trilogy, though the Cornish triology is almost as good, and the characters will stay with you
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forever. Finishing this trilogy was one of the saddest moments in my literary career; I just wanted it to keep on going. Show Less
LibraryThing member jpporter
I read the omnibus edition of the trilogy.
The Deptford Trilogy is an excellent 500-page book imbedded in a more-than-800-page mediocrity.
Ostensibly, the trilogy is a history about however many people from the same small Canadian town (Deptford), which ultimately revolves around uncovering the truth
I do not think much of the work. The first part (Fifth Business) starts with great promise: Ramsay narrates, and draws the reader into the book effectively, reminiscing about a fight between him and Boy as 10-year-olds. The fight ends with Boy throwing a snowball (in which Boy had imbedded a large rock) at Ramsay, which Ramsay ducks, whereupon the snowball catches pregnant Mrs. Dempster in the back of the head. This causes Mrs. Dempster to go into labor; it also somewhat damages her mind.
A son is born to the Dempsters, and is named Paul. Ramsay takes it upon himself to attend to the needs of Paul and his mother, and does so actively until Paul's father (a fire-and-brimstone minister) catches Ramsay teaching Paul card tricks. For his part, Boy does not accept responsibility for his act; Ramsay lives with the guilt for the remainder of his life.
In The Manticore, narration is by Boy's son David. Boy was found in his car after having driven at high speed off a pier and into a lake. In his mouth was found the same rock he had put in the snowball he threw at Mrs. Dempster. David believes his father was murdered, but the official finding is suicide.
The third part of the trilogy (Worlds of Wonder) is told (for the most part) from the perspective of Magnus Eisengrim, a name assumed by Paul Dempster after he runs away from home. It does give an account of Paul's life, although - to be honest - by the time the reader gets to the third part, there's really little that needs to be added.
On the whole, the trilogy is full of promise, and the first book almost delivers on its promises ... but not quite. By the end of the second book a very good story has been told, although there are a few missing pieces. Any hopes that the third book would resolve everything, however, are ill-founded. Book three is almost a perfect waste of space.
To my mind, the third book simply underlines and writes in boldface problems that plague the entire trilogy: the work is at root pompous, pretentious, prolixity. This is especially true of book three. From start to finish, Worlds of Wonder is a contrivance. It serves no function that couldn't have been served by a 100-page synopsis. Take that, and remove the excess verbiage from the first two books, and you would have a 500-page incredibly entertaining book. As it is, I felt that I had been thoroughly abused by the time I finished the third book.
If you really want to enjoy the Deptford series, read the first two books and leave it at that.
The Deptford Trilogy is an excellent 500-page book imbedded in a more-than-800-page mediocrity.
Ostensibly, the trilogy is a history about however many people from the same small Canadian town (Deptford), which ultimately revolves around uncovering the truth
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about the murder (or suicide) of (Percy Boyd) Boy Staunton, wealthy sugar entrepreneur, political aspirant and indefatigable womanizer. The three parts of the trilogy are told from the perspectives of Staunton's childhood frienemy Dunstable (later, "Dunstan") Ramsay, David Staunton - Boy's son, and Magnus Eisengrim (nee Paul Dempster).I do not think much of the work. The first part (Fifth Business) starts with great promise: Ramsay narrates, and draws the reader into the book effectively, reminiscing about a fight between him and Boy as 10-year-olds. The fight ends with Boy throwing a snowball (in which Boy had imbedded a large rock) at Ramsay, which Ramsay ducks, whereupon the snowball catches pregnant Mrs. Dempster in the back of the head. This causes Mrs. Dempster to go into labor; it also somewhat damages her mind.
A son is born to the Dempsters, and is named Paul. Ramsay takes it upon himself to attend to the needs of Paul and his mother, and does so actively until Paul's father (a fire-and-brimstone minister) catches Ramsay teaching Paul card tricks. For his part, Boy does not accept responsibility for his act; Ramsay lives with the guilt for the remainder of his life.
In The Manticore, narration is by Boy's son David. Boy was found in his car after having driven at high speed off a pier and into a lake. In his mouth was found the same rock he had put in the snowball he threw at Mrs. Dempster. David believes his father was murdered, but the official finding is suicide.
The third part of the trilogy (Worlds of Wonder) is told (for the most part) from the perspective of Magnus Eisengrim, a name assumed by Paul Dempster after he runs away from home. It does give an account of Paul's life, although - to be honest - by the time the reader gets to the third part, there's really little that needs to be added.
On the whole, the trilogy is full of promise, and the first book almost delivers on its promises ... but not quite. By the end of the second book a very good story has been told, although there are a few missing pieces. Any hopes that the third book would resolve everything, however, are ill-founded. Book three is almost a perfect waste of space.
To my mind, the third book simply underlines and writes in boldface problems that plague the entire trilogy: the work is at root pompous, pretentious, prolixity. This is especially true of book three. From start to finish, Worlds of Wonder is a contrivance. It serves no function that couldn't have been served by a 100-page synopsis. Take that, and remove the excess verbiage from the first two books, and you would have a 500-page incredibly entertaining book. As it is, I felt that I had been thoroughly abused by the time I finished the third book.
If you really want to enjoy the Deptford series, read the first two books and leave it at that.
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LibraryThing member Smiley
Wonderful. Fifth Business, the first in the trilogy, is the best, but all three novels make a complete world. Beautiful Folio Society edition.
LibraryThing member Neil_Luvs_Books
It was good. I wanted to like it because so many say it is such a great trilogy. And I can see why it is so revered. But it is not as good as The Cornish Trilogy and not as laugh out loud funny as the Salterton Trilogy.
LibraryThing member TheGalaxyGirl
This review is for the first novel in the trilogy, Fifth Business. Robertson Davies is a master prose stylist, and I appreciated his use of language. The story is in the form of a long letter from a teacher to the headmaster of the school where he teaches. I found the story of the narrator's
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(Dunstable Ramsay) life and relationships with the people he grew up with to be interesting, as well as the unexpected encounters he has along the way. But the choice to present the novel as a letter written to someone else makes the events of the story seem removed and distant, so I never connected with the character. Even the amusing and tragic parts of his story seemed as though I was seeing them through a veil. Although I enjoyed it for the most part, it felt like one long piece of exposition. Taking a break before reading the next novel in this collection. Show Less
Original publication date
1970
1972
1975
Local notes
Deptford is a fictional, small town in rural Canada, and at the centre of its tight-knit community are three boys whose lives are entwined from the moment one throws a stone hidden in a snowball.
FS-DPT.
FS-DPT.