Anita Brookner by Hermione Lee review – an enigmatic literary great given her due

Hermione Lee, an emeritus English professor at the University of Oxford, has penned a comprehensive biography, "Anita Brookner," aiming to dismantle the reductive and often inaccurate public perception of the Booker Prize-winning author. Lee asserts that the prevalent image of Brookner as a solitary, cardigan-clad figure perpetually pining for an absent lover is a mischaracterization that conflates the author with her fictional creations. This popular notion, Lee argues, fails to acknowledge the full scope of Brookner's prolific literary output.

Brookner, who made her literary debut at the relatively late age of 53 with her novel "A Start in Life," is often misunderstood. The opening sentence of this debut, "Dr Weiss, at forty, knew that her life had been ruined by literature," immediately signals a complex relationship with her craft, yet it has been unduly interpreted as a reflection of her personal life. Lee's biography meticulously explores Brookner's often mysterious early years and confronts the undeserved criticism that accompanied her significant literary success. Brookner authored 24 novels over a span of 30 years, a body of work that extends far beyond the confines of romantic longing.

While Lee readily acknowledges the existence of a distinct "Brooknerian" style, characterized by its signature elegance, profound restraint, and pervasive melancholia, she emphasizes that Brookner's fictional universe engaged with the broader spectrum of human emotional and psychological experience. Her novels delved deeply into themes such as the intricate dynamics of family relationships, the profound impact of exile and displacement, the multifaceted concept of home, the enduring scars of trauma, and the universal process of ageing. Crucially, Lee points out that only the first four of Brookner's novels – "A Start in Life," "Providence," "Look at Me," and "Hotel du Lac" – centrally feature a single woman yearning for love. By presenting a more complete and nuanced portrait, Lee's biography endeavors to grant Brookner the full literary recognition she merits, moving beyond the singular, melancholic archetype to celebrate her profound and wide-ranging engagement with the complexities of the human condition.