BOOK REVIEW: THE PALE ONES BY BARTHOLOMEW BENNETT

29/8/2018

by tony jones

What price would you pay to discover that rarest of first editions?
A startling supernaturaL odyssey into the weird world of charity shops…

book review THE PALE ONES BY BARTHOLOMEW BENNETT Picture

There is nothing more rewarding than beginning a new book, with minimal foreknowledge of its plot, and then realising within ten pages that it is a complete winner. Bartholomew Bennett’s debut novella “The Paul Ones” knocks it out of the park, whilst leading the disorientated reader on a mesmerising slow dance into the murky world of book selling which was enjoyable on a couple of different levels. Firstly, it’s a superb yarn which very, very slowly and subtlety builds up tension with an uneasy developing sense of the uncanny over 120-pages. Secondly, it’s a book about books (and I love those) and a treasure for bibliophiles as the author’s deep personal love for the printed word is conveyed through, the somewhat cynical, narrator.

At first glance you might think this novella is not about very much, but when you dig a little deeper, there is much to savour, puzzle and suck you into. “The Pale Ones” opens in a London charity shop when the narrator is tipped and winked to buy a crusty old book called ‘World War II Destroyers’ by a fellow book browser he calls ‘Harris’. The narrator is a buyer and seller of books, who trawls charity shops for bargains which he then resells online, and it’s an occupation he enjoys and there is money to be made. Harris is another bookseller whom the narrator believes to be more experienced and successful than himself. After grudgingly buying the war book which he later realises it is in fact worth up to £75, Harris is no fool, or so it seems. After a few drinks together, Harris offers the narrator a temporary partnership, to accompany him to Yorkshire on a book buying expedition. He promises him a sizable percentage of the profits and the first pick of the rarities they are sure to find. An offer not to be refused!

Going back to his love of books…. The narrator adores sniffing out a bargain and mentions a number of titles along the way, and as someone who has bought, sold, or given away countless novels over the years I found myself searching my memory banks for whether I had ever owned ‘such and such’ a version of Malcolm Lowry’s ‘Under the Volcano’ or whether I had unwittingly ever given away a novel which was worth a small fortune, probably... Moving away from horror for a moment, if you’re a big reader you’re going to have a lot of fun with “The Pale Ones”. In the forward Bartholomew Bennett says he bought and sold books for many years, so he really knows the game and it really shines through, adding a weird level of authenticity to the novella.

Horror legend Ramsey Campbell, also a well-known bibliophile, wrote the bi-line for the cover so he probably agrees with some of my comments above, writing: “A real addition to the literature of the uncanny and an impressive debut”. Ramsey nails it, for most of the novella the reader was unsure which shape the supernatural element was going to take, but you just know it’s coming. Campbell has written fiction with a very similar style himself, and not so long ago wrote a novella about books in “The Booking” and has produced many novels where the supernatural element in a story is playfully teased out very slowly, like with this 120-page novella which fits superbly well into the area of ‘quiet horror’ which has merited considerable discussion recently.

Harris takes our narrator on a merry dance of drinking, buying, selling and meeting strangers and weirdos in decrepit areas of the north east of England. The carrot is the narrator discovering that rare first edition, or valuable illustrated reprint, which always seems to be out of reach. Of course, we are reading the account of the narrator, written in the first person, so perhaps we can’t trust his opinion 100% either as he has his own fair share of personal problems. Their journey is a bizarre one, and the bulk of the novella concerns this unsettling odyssey to buy books nobody else seems to want or would happily give away for free. The narrator trying to get a genuine handle of what Harris is up to is a real treat and also darkly comical.

The narrator is unintentionally funny, which is great writing, and I found myself sniggering as he gets landed with more and more crap books, not a Malcolm Lowry in sight, as he vents to Harris: “I didn’t take you all that way to increase my holdings in Clive fucking Cussler and Danielle Steele.” Neither is the narrator particularly likable, but he is so skilfully written that does not matter a jot. Overall though it’s quite hard to put my finger on why I thought “The Pale Ones” was so good; it was probably a combination of many things, an expertly paced plot, their expressive descriptions of their journey (and the books), not to mention the odd balls they meet along the way. But I suppose the overriding strength was the way in which the two characters bounced off each other. The narrator really does not like Harris, but in his revulsion, is still drawn to him in an unpleasant way. How can you describe him: you want to look away, but you keep your eyes trained on him anyway.

“The Pale Ones” is part of a new series of literary novellas published by Inkandescent, as far as I am aware this is the only horror release thus far but considering the high quality of this I really hope they have more in the pipeline. In a recent correspondence publisher Justin David hinted that Bartholomew Bennett was working on a follow-up of some sort. Let’s hope so, this was a highly impressive debut which deserves to make waves in both literary and genre circles.

Tony Jones

“An insidiously disquieting tale, flavourfully told. What begins as a dark comedy of book collecting gradually accumulates a profound sense of occult dread, which lingers long after the book is finished. It’s a real addition to the literature of the uncanny and an impressive debut for its uncompromising author.” RAMSEY CAMPBELL, author of the Brichester Mythos trilogy

Pulped fiction just got a whole lot scarier…

Few books are treasured. Most linger in the dusty purgatory of the bookshelf, the attic, the charity shop, their sallow pages filled with superfluous knowledge. And with stories. Darker than ink, paler than paper, something is rustling through their pages.

Harris loves to collect the unloved. And in helping people. Or so he says. He wonders if you have anything to donate. To his ‘children’. Used books are his game. Neat is sweet; battered is better. Tears, stains, broken spines – ugly doesn’t matter. Not a jot. And if you’ve left a little of yourself between the pages – a receipt or ticket, a mislaid letter, a scrawled note or number — that’s just perfect. He might call back.

Hangover Square meets Naked Lunch through the lens of a classic M. R. James ghost story. To hell and back again (and again) via Whitby, Scarborough and the Yorkshire Moors. Enjoy your Mobius-trip.