#nothebooker review no.2: The less than perfect legend of Donna Creosote by Dan Micklethwaite

• Note: I’m trying to read and review the shortlist for the Guardian’s #notthebooker prize — the last review can be found here

The less than perfect legend of Donna Creosote is a difficult book to get a handle on.

The plot is relatively straightforward. A lonely woman, damaged by her family, withdraws into a world of fantasy novels and what she reads starts to overtake her real life. Parallels of Don Quixote essentially. But it’s tricky to know what the novel is actually about. Is it about a woman in the middle of a mental health breakdown? Is it about alcoholism? Is it about love? Lost love? Is it about the damage our parents do to us? Is it about imagination and love of literature being an emotional crutch as much as a comfort?

At times it seems to be all these things and that’s both a strength and a weakness in Donna Creosote. The light touch, the moving from idea to idea is an effective way of exploring the eponymous character, of understanding her delicate mental state, her humours and views. Centring a whole novel around a single character trying to deal with overwhelming emotional challenges is tricky, but by not settling, by exploring new thoughts as they assail Donna Dan Micklethwaite does it well. But the end you do feel you have an understanding of Donna, why she is who she is and why she has made the choices she has.

The problem comes when trying to draw conclusions from the novel, a take-away point. The book is obviously one of ideas, one trying to make the reader think, and that’s to be applauded. But if the author did have a specific point he wanted to drive home, I’m afraid it escaped me. The writer isn’t helped by the fact he seems to lose control of the structure of the novel towards the end, letting it descend into a slightly untidy stream on consciousness which is difficult to follow and leads to a confusing finale.

I’d contrast it with the novel that it struck me as most similar to,The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder by John Ironmonger. Maximilian Ponder (again, I’m going to cut down the title here) is also a book about ideas, about the lasting bonds of friendship and the dangers of living a life entirely of the mind. But unlikely Donna Creosote it manages to settle down and focus on these ideas, which to me makes it a more powerful novel.

Having said this, the flightyness of Donna Creosote shouldn’t put anybody off. It’s certainly very enjoyable, for all its lack of focus. I found the writing engaging and actually in a quiet way innovative. In some passages I was reminded of Max Porter’s brilliant Grief is thing with feathers. This book isn’t quite at that level, but in its playfulness, its twisting of form, there were certainly echoes.

It’s a funny novel as well. Dan Micklethwaithe has a lovely ironic touch when it comes to the inherent comedy of Donna’s life, both when expanding upon her thoughts or explaining her often ridiculous situation. The opening in particular made me laugh out loud, as the heroine attempts to create her own suit of armour with nothing but a hoodie, some baking trays and a roll of aluminium foil.

So, in conclusion, an amusing read, some interesting ideas, a likeable and compelling main character. But…needed more focus.