Cohen's prose is generous yet contained, and so exquisitely evocative and sensual that reading The Favourite Game in a short period of time, as I did, in just over five hours, begins to feel much like the hours-long embrace of passionate young lovers, punctuated by fevered outbursts of raw sexuality. Putting the book down, at its end, feels like one last tight hug and tender kiss at a door, before the young lovers lose one another for an unthinkable, no matter how short, time. The easy way to talk about Cohen's debut novel is to speak of it as somewhat autobiographical. While Cohen and Breavman may share several details of their lives, it's just not very useful to concentrate on such things while talking about this novel. Breavman may not be a very likable character, and Cohen frequently writes him in a sort of wistfully satirical tone, less viciously critical than regretfully sad, but he is a complex and rich character. The novel, though mostly written in a third-person voice, also seems to be mostly from the perspective of Breavman, and as such, the oddly... biased? One-dimensional? characterization of most of the other characters in The Favourite Game makes logical and emotional sense. The obvious comparisons to Catcher in the Rye and A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man aren't misguided, but they're still pointless. Does it matter that Breavman is similar to Caulfield, except more grown up for much of this novel's length? Do we have to compare this book to the most well-known example of its genre? These comparisons weaken the case for The Favourite Game to be taken seriously in its own right as an important debut novel and not the side project of a poet who moonlit as a novelist in the 1960's.Indeed, outside of Canada, this novel doesn't appear to be widely studied at all. It has a lot of interesting things to say, indirectly and not confrontationally, about issues of Canadian identity and character, and remains astonishingly relevant and true so many years after it was written. It remains one of the great urban Canadian novels in a literary scene so famed and praised for its rural literature, a literature which denies the reality of (by far) most Canadians' lives. Still, much of the novel is universal in its relevance. The emphasis on ethnic identity, the sensuality, the obsessions which take over Brevman's poetic psychology are all cross-cultural. Montreal Jews in the fifties may well be a number of other ethnic groups in a number of other places. Breavman's sexuality and his obsessions are nakedly, brazenly put into words by Cohen. It is one of the most honest novels around about what goes through the minds of young men. All of the silliness and stupidity of these thoughts, the rationalized vulgarity, the brazen animal sexuality tempered by social expectations. While Breavman's characterization is reasonably captivating, especially in the character's balancing act between tendencies to destruction and preservation, and Cohen maintains a very high level of authorial craftsmanship throughout the novel, what I keep coming back to in my head is the prose, which is why I think that anyone who hasn't read this novel ought to read it. If written by a less confident and talented author, The Favourite Game may not have been all that good. The substance of the novel is only as good as its expression, especially in this case, where Cohen's stupid honesty and sincerity threatens frequently to fall into self-parody and unsuitable ridiculousness, but always stays on the right side of that line, even during Breavman's frequent praisings of the thighs of his lovers, or his fevered archaeological excavations of his lovers' bodies. Oh, and the book's pretty funny, too.
It doesn't take very many pages into Leonard Cohen's The Favorite Game to be reminded just how much the man loves language and how well he paints with it. Better known as a song writer and a poet, Cohen has published only two novels: The Favorite Game (1963) and Beautiful Losers (1966). No doubt he has his reasons for not channeling more of his output into prose, but it's a shame as his fiction is every bit as good as his music and poetry.The Favorite Game is a love story, a love story about being in love with love itself. It's poignant...“Seven to eleven is a huge chunk of life. It is fabled that we slowly lose the gift of speech with animals, that birds no longer visit our windowsills to converse. As our eyes grow accustomed to sight they armor themselves against wonder. Flowers once the size of pine trees return to clay pots. Even terror diminishes. The giants and giantesses of the nursery shrink to crabby teachers and human fathers. Breavman forgot everything he learned from Lisa's small body.”It's savagely insightful... “Armed with betrayal, Shell approached her husband. One needs weapons to hunt those close. Foreign steel must be introduced. The world in the married house is too spongy, familiar. The pain, present in plenty, is absorbed. Other worlds must be ushered in to cut the numb.”It's funny...“She told him she loved him. A loon went insane in the middle of the lake.”The Favorite Game's characters skirt the periphery of intimacy though they crave making a deep and meaningful connection. This human conflict is nothing new in literature, but Cohen views the story with refocused lenses, reveling nuances that often go undetected...“Shell was genuinely fond of him. She had to resort to that expression when she examined her feelings. That sickened her because she did not wish to dedicate her life to a fondness. This was not the kind of quiet she wanted. The elegance of a dancing couple was remarkable only because the grace evolved from a sweet struggle of flesh. Otherwise it was puppetry, hideous. She began to understand peace as an aftermath.”Simply put, this is one remarkable work. For Cohen fans and those still trying to unmask love it's a must-read.
What do You think about The Favorite Game (2003)?
I was talking with my philosophy teacher about stream-of-consciousness fiction. We both agreed it was a frustrating format, because, as he put it, "it was too self-indulgent."Enter Leonard Cohen, brilliant poet and musician. His books are blatantly too much of a good thing -- because if you want 330 pages of his poetic comparisons, you must have some kind of infinite tolerance. It took forever to finish because it was just so odd to go through; it was vaguely chronological, but felt almost above my comprehension, like some kind of theme was lost on me.Sure, the message clicked -- leaving impressions on people and continuing on again is his Game -- but it felt like I spent too long hearing about Leonard's (or Laurence's) sex life, from experimentation at the age of eleven(? eleven?) to his continual casual 'meets' as he grows older.He doesn't even feel bad about breaking hearts or using women, beyond Wanda -- is she just innocent, so it's different? -- so he doesn't exactly come off as likable. Just quiet, insightful, sexual. Honestly, if you really want to read this, go for it...but don't expect a mind-shattering read. It doesn't compare to Salinger at all (the first betrayal of the back cover).
—Sophia
This book is the reason why I give less than five stars to so many others.Exquisitely written, it allows the reader an insight into the life experiences of a brutally self-involved person. The central character Breavman lives in a world of his own creation, a world of "expectation". He lurches from one whim to the next and in the process leaves a trail of relationship debris, about which he cares little.In the sheer genius of his style, Cohen redeems his protagonist from his life of arrogance and loneliness in one acute paragraph. In so doing, Cohen restores hope for the reader, hope for his protagonist, hope that all things, all people have potential for change.And this was Cohen's first novel, beautiful, crafted with an obvious intelligence and depth of perception.
—Ilyhana Kennedy
My husband's been listening to Cohen's his new album lately. He's a big fan!! I'll tell him about both books. I'll check out his novels though. Thanks!
—Nancy
