Molloy

Tempted to put down Beckett's novel as unreadable? Just two separate monologues, with little or no apparent connection today? Don't be too hasty. In print the two monologues are hard to connect, it's true. Molloy, a homeless derelict in search of his mother, narrates Part I, while Moran, a pretentious, outwardly devout prig, seeks Molloy himself in Part II. Sean Barrett and Dermot Crowley each read separate parts, and, oddly, these two skilled actors hold the book together remarkably well. Though the connection between the two monologues is thin, each is richly nuanced with Beckett's sometimes dark, sometimes ribald humor. The distinct readings lend the book a dramatic presence, playfully yet skillfully rendering all the characters to illuminate Beckett's irony. So while in print it seems dark, even absurd, in audio this work takes on the full richness of comedy, probably as Beckett, preeminently a dramatist, intended. P.E.F. (c) AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine

Starred review from April 1, 2004
An introspective and groundbreaking work of absurdist fiction, Molloy is the first of three Beckett novels known collectively as "The Trilogy." It comprises two first-person narrative sections, each from a different perspective. In the first, Molloy tries to find his mother; in the second, private detective Jacques Moran searches for Molloy. This division into two extended monologs suggests that the narrators constitute separate personalities, each desperately trying to explain his actions; however, Molloy and Jacques begin to exhibit similar physical and psychological traits as they search fruitlessly for unreachable external realities. The reading by Sean Barrett and Dermot Crowley brilliantly captures the vagaries of Beckett's language, the miserable isolation of his characters, and the considerable humor that exists even within Beckett's bleakest works. Highly recommended for all general and academic library collections.-Philip Bader, Pasadena, CA

Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.