Friday, June 20, 2003
Title: Blackbox
Author: Nick Walker
Publisher: Headline
Trying to explain Blackbox is likely to be a difficult task I reckon, at least without giving too much detail away or totally confusing the reader. Approaching Blackbox the thing that is most known about the debut novel by Nick Walker is that someone died on a flight and that the death has affected a number of people. Early on we have the speculation of flight numbers - if this is flight 841 does that mean there were 840 previous flights? With this, Walker tells his story in sections, counting down those flight numbers and steadily introducing us to his cast of characters, a large enough group that a character list is included at the end for you to keep track of them all.
Straight off I'll say that Blackbox is very enjoyable. Watching all the pieces come together one by one until the climax is intriguing. Walker introduces us to characters, and then links them to other characters, then links those to yet other characters. The result is a web and actions bring things together so a full circle is evident. Early on the idea of six degrees of separation is echoed, and it is clear that the concept is one of the core thoughts behind the writing. with part of the enjoyment coming from the pieces falling into place, so that the presence of characters, and the way they are behaving fall into place.
The cast of characters includes sisters, brothers, wives, husbands, fathers and daughters. Actions include lies and deception, betrayal and mistaken identity. Characters are filled with guilt at what they have done or anger at what has been done to them. The flow keeping the reader going, so that we come crashing off the key sections with a striking inevitability.
In writing terms I get a comparison to Chuck Palahniuk coming up. The fact that Palahniuk's Survivor also features a count down and a character recording his life on a black box contributes to that as well - though that is really just coincidental base level. Walker delivers a dark humour in his writing, but is less caustic than Palahniuk. Blackbox also feels denser and like more of a writing achievement, Nick Walker delivering a solid piece of work here.
RVWR: PTR
June 2003
