Lanny by Max Porter
“And she laughed, and said she understood, and then off she drifted in that nice way she has. Responsive to the light, I would call it. The type of person who is that little bit more akin to the weather than most people, more obviously made of the same atoms as the earth than most people these days seem to be. Which explains Lanny.”
The tale of Lanny, a whimsical, mischievous child growing up in a small village outside of London, is intricately told by author Max Porter. Alternately strange and fascinating, Lanny is one of the most unique novels I have read to date. The story is a layered narrative featuring a disappearance, the presence of a mythical creature, and the darkness that emerges from a group of people when the unexplainable takes place in a home they considered safe. The mythical creature, Dead Papa Toothwort, drives almost every aspect of the story as he sneaks around the village, stealing whispers of conversation and secrets shared between unsuspecting individuals. Toothwort is described as a shapeshifter who is typically adorned with green leaves, often finding himself running dazed through the surrounding woods. Toothwort has heard the villagers speaking of this child, Lanny, who sings and dances and expresses his spirit freely. Dead Papa Toothwort is enamored with the idea of Lanny, and the tale is set in motion with this one fateful realization.
Each character in Lanny plays a significant role in the development of the story, as Lanny’s parents are the first to bear the blame when Lanny mysteriously goes missing. His mother, Jolie, is an actress turned writer who raises suspicion from outsiders when it is revealed that she was researching a gruesome crime novel at the time of Lanny’s disappearance. Lanny’s father, Robert, is a businessman who cannot seem to connect with his eccentric son. Glimpses into Robert’s mind reveal that he is challenged by the prospect of parenting, though it is obviously too late to turn back now. Robert feels removed from Lanny’s life in a way that is not shared by Jolie. To substitute the relationship Lanny is missing with his father, Lanny befriends a local man by the name of Mad Pete who begins to teach Lanny how to draw. Mad Pete arouses suspicion from the villagers upon Lanny’s disappearance as well, and the way in which he suffers as the scapegoat is difficult and upsetting to read at times.
The villagers in Lanny are ruled by sudden, angry bursts of emotion as they struggle to figure out the mystery that is Lanny, his outsider parents, and the burgeoning friendship between Lanny and Mad Pete. The presence of Dead Papa Toothwort, who intervenes in Lanny’s life throughout the tale, only serves to add a heavier layer of oppression on the town and on this modernly grim fairytale. The book is strange and original, though sometimes confusing and off-putting with a mixture of the two. Porter interweaves snippets of conversation overheard by Toothwort by swirling italicized, wavy lines of script throughout the pages. I found myself turning the book this way and that to read the lines and decipher the meaning of what I was reading. I was alternately transfixed by what was unraveling and concerned about just how much oddness could be contained within such a short story. I have always been a fan of the strange and obscure, and I did enjoy the uniqueness of Porter’s writing even if I was not overly fond of Lanny in the end. It is difficult to describe exactly what transpires without risking spoilers or influencing opinions, but I did enjoy the quiet escape of reading a novel that was completely original.
Max Porter is a gifted writer who transfixes his reader from the first sentence. The concluding pages of Lanny are dazzlingly odd, and you are unlikely to have a similar reading experience in the future. If you are looking for something to read that will leave you scratching your head and questioning reality when you finish, then Lanny is the perfect book for you.
Lanny
By Max Porter
2012 pages. 2019.
About Sam Cohen
Sam Cohen is a writer and editor based in New England. She lives with her wonderful partner Caleb, and enjoys learning new languages, drinking lattes, and spending time with her loved ones. Sam is an avid reader who practices yoga and tries to laugh as often as possible. She hopes to be a published author one day. She can be found on Twitter and Instagram.