Remainder by Tom McCarthy

This novel grabbed my attention when I saw it listed as a giveaway on ChuckPalahniuk.net. I tried to get a free copy, but they'd all been given away. Enter Cultie McMuddle, always ready to lend a hand, or in this case, his copy of Remainder.

The story centers on a young man who's just been through some kind of traumatic incident that's wiped his memory clean. He receives a call from his attorney, who informs him that his settlement for the accident has come through. As long as he keeps mum about what happened, the people responsible will pay him eight million pounds. The narrator stays true to his word, hinting a few times throughout the book as to what may have happened, but never giving concrete details. And in this story, everything is about the details. While pondering how he might spend his newfound fortune, the narrator finds himself in a bathroom at a party, staring at a crack in the wall. He's amazed. Enthralled. His hope is renewed. Why? He's seen this crack before, and knows it's important, but doesn't know why. The room is familiar as well. He decides to focus on his memories and recreate them. Painstakingly. As in, he wants to build an apartment complex around the memory of the crack and some other details that begin to trickle to the surface. His Quixotic quest for self-realization grows into a manic explosion of obsessive re-enactments and recreations, ultimately building to an intense finale.

Some have complained that the novel bogs down with too many details, but that seems to be the point of the story. Early on, the narrator reminds us that he struggles to remember anything - how to tie a shoe, how to leave the house for groceries, how to walk. Each task must be broken down into its smallest possible component in order for him to be able to move forward. While this novel grated on my nerves a little with its open-endedness, it also kept me turning the pages.