A spellbinding tale of faeries and frailty

Saturday 23 June 2012

California-based Chris Adrian has an extraordinary imagination, as well as talent to burn.

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alastair mabbott

So it's a little mystifying that this re-imagining of A Midsummer Night's Dream, his fourth book, is only the first to be published in Britain. It takes place in San Francisco's Buena Vista Park, which, as it turns out, has been the home of Titania, Oberon and the rest of the faeries for a long time.

Immortal they may be, but not immutable. This Midsummer's Eve is unlike any before and that's the result of Oberon's decision to present his Queen with a human baby, a boy she grew unexpectedly attached to – so much so that, when the child succumbed to leukaemia, Tatiana became so overwhelmed with grief that Oberon walked out on her. To flush him out of hiding, she decides to free the dreaded Puck, reasoning that Oberon will be compelled to stem the inevitable trail of destruction left by the little monster.Meanwhile, by strolling through the park at the wrong time, three mortals have been caught up in the action. All have suffered losses they need to overcome before they can get on with their lives. There's also a group rehearsing a musical based on Soylent Green, as they believe the homeless are being served up to other homeless.It's spellbinding (aptly enough) to see Adrian reshaping Shakespeare's narrative to his own ends. As a doctor (who deals with children who have leukaemia) and a former divinity student, he's concerned with the healing of people's bodies and their souls. One of the most striking chapters takes place in a hospital room teeming with exotic faeries, which are invisible to the doctors who see only Titania and Oberon in their mortal disguise as a hairdresser and an organic farmer, coming to terms with their helplessness in the face of terminal illness, like many parents Adrian has met in his professional life. Moments like this, where the fabulous and the everyday dovetail seamlessly, abound in this novel, and prompt the hope that The Great Night makes enough of a splash for the rest of his work to be made available in this country.THE GREAT NIGHTChris Adrian, Granta, £8.99

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A spellbinding tale of faeries and frailty

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