The Late Work of Margaret Kroftis – A Portrayal of Loss through the Surreal

A novella by Mark Gluth

In his debut novel Mark Gluth creates Margaret Kroftis, an aging writer living out her old age in near-complete solitude. Having always had an interest for new and novel authors, I immediately seized the chance to read a book by an author about an author, one who writes and dies within a book. In a truly captivating format Mark Gluth assembles the life of the fictitious Margaret Kroftis into a series of situations focused on very mundane events tinted with grief. As you are given a window into her life you read some of the pieces she "writes" within the novel that later evolve to alter the course of another character. Who later goes on to experience a youth filled with friendship and tainted with profound personal loss. Although I appreciate drama, the sorrow this novel makes this a bitter read.

This is done by expanding the central theme of grief introduced early on through Margaret, imposed upon characters later touched by her works in preceding chapters of the novel. Those characters refer to other characters within the novel, even going so far as to write stories about them, all within this one novel. This makes attachment to any one character a tentative process at best, leaving me uncertain as to which character is about to take the limelight in the next paragraph, through this style this novel goes a long way in illustrating its chief focus, that of the emotions created within the characters and how they are expressed. All the while elaborating on a complex web of interactions between them causing me to frequently look back and check who's who. This task was all the more difficult for two reasons. There is no dialogue within the book; it is filled with descriptions of who said what about what. Also, names are frequently only used a handful of times per part, soon after switching to a first person narrative. This made the second chapter a particularly difficult one to keep up with as the narrative routinely changed character.

The book's three chapters unfold through literal events and stunning imagery, through flawed observations and surreal musings. This can make the plot frustratingly difficult to grasp at times as events are portrayed side-by-side with memories and daydreams. Occasionally this hinders the development of the characters, which are pushed to the side as the focus shifts to their dreams and back to the characters with little warning. Yet at the same time the author could not have picked a better style, giving his characters a depth well suited for the roles they play, with their own individual interpretations and reactions. Mundane actions are constantly interrupted by flashbacks and dreamy observations giving characters a fragile sort of life as they deal with the disappointment and failure they encounter in life.

Although the events in this book do occur in a chronological order, BEWARE! Time is virtually non-existent within this novel. Indefinite stretches of time often pass between parts and chapters with a disorienting consistency. Usually this would be a very frustrating experience, but instead the transitions flow in a very lifelike matter. With seemingly innocent events engaging the characters for long stretches of time while important ones pass in the blink of an eye. Despite the slim size of this novel I was thoroughly engaged by its narrative style and the complex interactions between characters. It may have been hard to follow at times, but those "AHA" moments when you realize the full role of a previously minor character give the story its own sense of depth.  This is definitely a book I would recommend reading AT LEAST twice.