Merlin of the Magnolias, by Gardner Landry, Greenleaf Book Group Press - thank you Netgalley
I could not help but compare Merlin of the Magnolias with Confederacy of Dunces. And could not help but see in Merlin the person of Ignatius. Merlin and his story have too much alike with CoD to ignore.
Both Merlin and Ignatius are immense in size and hirsute. Both are well educated and the language each speaks are similarly inflated. Both are eccentric. Both have a fascination with Fortuna, the goddess of fortune. Each plays an antique musical instrument. Each is a voracious eater. Each character is forced to find employment due to financial difficulties. In each story there is a breakup of an illegal sex operation. And both Merlin and Ignatius end up romantically involved.
In matters of fact and appearance both are quite similar. Their situations are similar. The actions of the novels are similar. Yet as regards aspects of character and motivations for actions they are as night and day.
Ignatius demurs while Merlin is demure. It is the “e” that defines Merlin’s differences of character: engergetic, engaged, enterprising, enthusiastic, and efficient. All things that Ignatius is not.
While Ignatius has an inflated sense of self, Merlin has a poor sense of self. Yet, Merlin is quite self-sufficient. Merlin is a doer, and a capable and competent doer at that. Merlin is friendly to others and engages them amiably. He has friends. He accepts people for who they are and not how he would wish them to be. He has purpose and wants to become better and do good. All these characteristics are alien to Ignatius.
Even in something as simple as dress there are differences. Well-dressed, Merlin enjoys matching his clothing to the day and mood. Ignatius seems to have a single ensemble.
Merlin grows and changes throughout gaining a sense of himself as an adult in a real world. Ignatius remains the same till the bitter end. And even though both have a romantic ending. In the end Ignatius finds romance to escape, Merlin finds it to fully engage.
These profound differences of character also shape the reading of the novels.
Merlin of the Magnolias stands in opposition to Confederacy of Dunces. While I struggled with CoD I found myself interested and wanting more of Merlin. Merlin has likeable characters, engaging storyline, and uplifting ending. Though each is an episodic aventure, Merlin maintains an optimism throughout. Merlin entertains hope. It shows a character growing into the world and becoming a part of it. Merlin beckoned me.
While these comments above represent a comparative study that would fall apart if imagined, just in case the connection is lost, Landry himself, towards the end of the book, inserts Ignatius into his story, however briefly.
Though not a perfect novel Merlin of the Magnolias kept me reading. I wanted to move through the book and discover how all the parts fell into place and to watch who Merlin was becoming. However I wish the language of the novel were not so adjectively driven and that everything did not come so easily to Merlin.
At the end of Confederacy of Dunces, Ignatius has failed to change. According to his mother, “You learnt everything, Ignatius, except how to be a human being.” Merlin on the other hand has become fully engaged and fully human.