Two artists who were former lovers reunite accidentally after years during the pandemic under different circumstances to paint the canvas of life
Renowned author Hari Kunzru’s latest novel, Blue Ruin, explores the intersecting lives of former lovers and artists Jay and Alice, set against the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. (Image by arrangement)
They say time stands still in the ruins, but memories never fade. In celebrated British author Hari Kunzru’s latest book, Blue Ruin, time moves back and forth seamlessly even as Jay, a down-on-luck artist looks back on the ruins of his life. The author sets the ball rolling with two former lovers, Jay and Alice, both art students, meeting by accident after decades at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. Although Jay was touted as a promising artist during his heyday in London’s art circles, the harsh reality is that today Jay is sick and living out of his car. He struggles for one square meal and earns a living by doing odd jobs and delivering groceries to the wealthy folks in the posh leafy neighbourhood of New York.
One day, a shabbily dressed Jay, who dons a face mask, comes huffing and puffing to deliver stuff to the owners of a beautiful wooded property. But much to his surprise, the gorgeous woman standing on the porch to fetch the delivery and tip him is Alice, his former lover from his art school days. The two were madly in love and inseparable during their college days but Jay’s nasty mood swings and dependence on drugs drifts them apart. Destiny always has something else in store. Alice moves on. She marries fellow artist Rob and settles down with him. Rob at one point was Jay’s best pal and an indomitable rival artist.
Today, Alice and Rob are a power couple in the article circles. The duo is blessed with fame and fortune. While Jay struggles to make ends meet and is on the brink of an emotional, physical, and mental breakdown. Ashamed of his circumstances, Jay hopes Alice does not recognise him. However, she does and asks Jay to convalesce on their sprawling estate. The characters dwell on their troubled pasts, tense present, and uncertain future in the backdrop of the Covid-19 pandemic. Kunzru’s brilliance in storytelling and powerful imagery is a class apart. The economic disparities, the world of haves and have-nots, the insular lives of rich folks, and the survival struggles of common people are captured in a pellucid stream in their dazzling novel. The novel gives the reader an unobstructed view of some literary masterstrokes. There are glimpses of artistic muse and abuse in equal quantities as well.
"Kunzru’s [Blue Ruin] is a triumph of beauty and a true ode to the artist.” — Oprah Winfrey
( Source : Deccan Chronicle )
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