Flame, London, 2000

This is another “heartbreaking work of staggering genius”, and Gayle´s Will is the male counterpart of Bridget Jones, which is definitely what the author intended, when he set his mind on writing this first person novel.

 And our Will´s life-filling occupation turns out to be suffering from serious heartbreak, caused by his legendary girlfriend Aggi, who left him heartlessly three years ago. He indulges in his self-pity feeling like “a tortured poet”. I wonder, if Gayle has ever read “Die Leiden des jungen Werther”. Anyway, his Will is such a tragic young character; he spends hours on the phone sharing his agony with whoever happens to be on the line, just like Werther writes endless unreadable letters to his true friend Wilhelm.

At the beginning, it is really hilarious to read about poor Will´s monstrous view of the world and himself, but in the end the fun wears a bit thin. Nevertheless, the insight in the male capability for self-pity is worth it.