Review: The life of a successful but tormented young artist.
Rating: 5 out of 5
Date: 12 10, 2012
I bought Water on impulse because I had enjoyed other Not So Noble titles.  I found it really different from their other titles but very engaging in its own way.It tells the story of Nathaniel Water, a rich young artist from London who seems to live a charmed life.  He is cultured and educated, eats the finest food, travels to destinations like Venice and Rome.  A true alpha male, he is very masculine, confident, forceful, and magnetically attractive to women.  He is ceaselessly creative, and for his art he is rewarded with praise and money.Yet beneath all this is a terrible boredom with life.  Water questions whether anything has any value - art, love, friendships.  His creativity comes from his attempt to keep at bay this nagging boredom, but it sometimes manifests itself as cruelty instead. He uses women like Jelena and Harriet for his own ends, and has dark thoughts about the artists and buyers he encounters in the art world.Water is a long book but I read it in a day. The main character is clearly a version of the author/narrator.  There is some really fine writing here, and fascinating digressions which give an insight into the life of a successful but tormented young artist.By the end of the book I envied the intensity with which Water experienced life, and tried to live every moment with full passion.  I didn't envy his struggle to find happiness, but I certainly enjoyed reading about it.