She warns the class that, though she does not pretend to be Socrates, she may not be the right teacher for all students: they will engage in dialogue. The narrator, Neil, a former student of Elizabeth Finch, takes her class “Culture and Civilization” in his thirties. This short book, divided into three parts, is part traditional novel, part essay, part biography. Of course, Julian Barnes does not do the expected thing. I had expected an imitation of a Brookner novel, with a spinster heroine, afternoons at The National Gallery, and unexpected friendships with surprising characters. (Both are Booker Prize winners.) I read it in an afternoon, completely absorbed but astonished. Aficionados of Julian Barnes may have read his new novel, Elizabeth Finch, based loosely on the life of the subtle writer, Anita Brookner.
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