Sea of Hooks

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Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Book ReviewsFull AccessSea of HooksJeffrey L. Geller, M.D., M.P.H., Lloyd I. Sederer, M.D.Jeffrey L. GellerSearch for more papers by this author, M.D., M.P.H., Editor, Lloyd I. SedererSearch for more papers by this author, M.D.Published Online:1 Dec 2014https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ps.651217AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail by Lindsay Hill; Kingston, New York, McPherson & Company, 2013, 349 pagesI am not sure who or which is more strange and unique—the book’s protagonist or its style.StyleThis book has no chapters: it is a seemingly endless series of sections, each with a short title and anywhere from seven words to two pages of exegesis. Nor does the narrative follow linear time; we ricochet from present to past and back to present. We follow Christopher Westall, the protagonist, as he inhabits San Francisco, Bhutan, and his idiosyncratic interior. Reflections and meditations, often in italics, intersperse the story of a very lost soul and those he meets, who are equally lost, but in different ways.The people we meetChristopher seems to have some form of autism spectrum disorder, I infer, from the oddness of his thoughts, his social maladroitness, his learning problems yet brilliance at bridge and bond trading, the meaning he attributes to the detritus he finds about him (which he endows with great importance), and the imaginary, separate reality that occupies his mind. His mother kills herself in his old room, which prompts his eastern adventure. His father was an alcoholic. Christopher was sexually abused as a teenager by a trusted tutor. He became a protégé of an older man, Dr. Thorn, who walked back into his burning house to his death.There were others:RinpocheTrungpa Rinpoche was the 11th descendent in the line of Trungpa tülkus, important teachers of the Kagyü lineage of Tibetan Buddhism.NeurotypicalsPeople with Asperger’s disorder (now part of autism spectrum disorder, thanks to DSM-5) regard those who are not so affected as “neurotypicals.” I am a neurotypical. I have my limitations.A more curious incidentHave you read Mark Haddon’s The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time? That’s a fascinating book, which is about to open as a Broadway play.Philip GlassI recall the first time I heard the music of Philip Glass. I went to a concert of his music with a very accomplished musician and music educator. She was entranced by his work. I immediately disliked it and its dysphoric tonality. I never could acquire the taste for his work. I guess I am conventional in my music and in my literary tastes.Some reviewers have greeted Lindsay Hill, the author of Sea of Hooks, as a brilliant innovator; they say this first novel (after a career as a poet) is a remarkable piece of writing. I would not have finished the book had I not committed to review it. Maybe he is an acquired taste?Dr. Sederer is medical director of the New York State Office of Mental Health and adjunct professor at the Columbia Mailman School of Public Health, New York City.The reviewer reports no financial relationships with commercial interests. FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited byNone Volume 65Issue 12 December 01, 2014Pages e12-e12 Metrics The reviewer reports no financial relationships with commercial interests.PDF download History Published online 1 December 2014 Published in print 1 December 2014