Book review: A Week In December, Sebastian Faulks
Posted on 22. Dec, 2009 by Rachael in Books, Reviews
A Week In December is a beautifully busy book, and does a great job of portraying the diversity of the inhabitants of a huge city such as London. The 7 main characters we follow, across 7 days, are poles apart in their belief systems, wealth and professions. Without actually mentioning the subject, Faulks delves deep into the “six degrees of separation” – he has you fully believing in this theory.
To cleverly weave such a detailed web, without leaving the reader feeling bogged down or confused takes huge talent. Each character’s life is a fully rounded out story in its own merit; not a single one appears to be surplus to the requirements of the story. If this were a play you’d need a cast of 50+ people.
On one page you find yourself on a private jet to Geneva with the odious John Veals. He is a hugely successful hedge fund manager whose only drive in life is to make more money and is on the verge of making the biggest deal of his life.
Another page will find you on the Tube with train driver, Jenni Fortune. She loves her job because she finds being in the dark tunnels beneath the buzz of the city suits her need for escapism. When not in work Jenni spends her time either stuck deep into a book or on Parallax, an online virtual world. Here she takes on the form of a maquette, the out-going Miranda, who unlike Jenni is looking for love and enjoys online dating.
The rest are:
Hassan: a student who gets drawn into an Islamic fundamentalist group.
Gabriel: A young barrister who is struggling for work, is penniless and is nursing a broken heart.
RT: a bilious book reviewer who carries the burden of his own failed writing career like a badge that must be stamped on everything he reviews.
Fin: a school boy addicted to skunk, margherita pizzas and a reality TV show called It’s Madness. Here, in the blackest of humour, Faulks has created a set-up that exposes the farcical and futile world of programmes like Big Brother. Taking this voyeuristic concept a step further towards downright bad taste by describing the “Barking Bungalow” – a house/studio inhabited entirely with people with varying psychiatric problems, setting them ‘tasks’ such as going without their medication for a week.
Spike Borowski : a professional footballer recently arrived in London from Poland.
As ever, Faulks has taken no shortcuts in his research. The detail that goes into describing such things as FSA procedures and shortcuts (John Veals), The Koran and Islamic Law (Hassan), mental illness (within Gabriel & Fin’s stories) is fantastic and is told in such a way that is doesn’t bore the socks off the reader – always a bonus I think 
This book could easily be called “The Signs of The Times” as it so accurately describes how the electronic age is slowly whittling away and changing what it means to be human. It shows how just one renegade act can wreak havoc on the lives of thousands. Also, how simply this can all be done without getting ones hands dirty due to the ‘advance’ and so-called sophistication of technology.
A Week In December builds to a gripping end that does not disappoint. The rich, thought-provoking story is one that will be ringing in your ears for a long time to come.
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AndreaSparkle
22. Dec, 2009
I love this review, Rae, particularly the way you describe the characters that Faulks creates: “a bilious book reviewer who carries the burden of his own failed writing career like a badge that must be stamped on everything he reviews.” – I think he works for The Guardian lol!
It all sounds very intriguing and very 21st Century; it’s definitely another one to add to the list!