WATER MUSIC by T.C. Boyle

Mungo Park, a character based on a real explorer, is arrogant and impractical, and sometimes even cowardly in his personal relationships.  To accompany this real life character with a weird name, the author has fun giving cheeky names to his fictional characters.  Ned Rise, whose surname hints of his multiple resurrections, is an enterprising rascal of London’s underbelly.  His nemesis is the dastardly Smirke.  Ned may not be a real historical figure, but he serves as a guide to the late eighteenth century and early nineteenth century happenings in this novel.  He is also the antithesis of Mungo in background and temperament.  These two men’s stories will eventually converge, but, until then, this first novel of T.C. Boyle’s seems overly ambitious and is tedious at times.  Mungo Park is determined to be the first white man to follow the Niger River to its mouth, and he makes this journey twice.  Both journeys are long and life-threatening, and somewhat repetitive, if you ask me. As with Boyle’s other fictional biographies, this real-life framework constrains the author’s creativity.  A welcome aside is the author’s occasional focus on Park’s long-suffering wife, who can’t decide whether to wait for Park’s return or get on with her life—twice!  Ned, however, is a far more colorful character than either of the Parks, and he lends heart and sparkle to this otherwise long and arduous tale.