My Secret History

My Secret History
First US edition
Author Paul Theroux
Country United States
Language English
Publisher Putnam Adult (US)
Hamish Hamilton (UK)
Publication date
 June 1989
Media type Print
Pages 511 (US) 480 (UK)
ISBN 0-399-13424-7

My Secret History is a novel by Paul Theroux published in June 1989 by Putnam Adult in the US and Hamish Hamilton in the UK.[1]

The novel follows the life of Andre (Andy) Parent as he "grows" through his life and the person he becomes through his experiences, experiences that have been said by some to be extremely autobiographical, but the author himself states in the book that only some of the events in the book are relevant to his own life, without telling us which bits these are.

The novel is divided into six sections :-

  • Altar Boy [1956], set in the Boston suburb of Medford[2] (Theroux's birthplace) where 15-year-old Andy acts as altar boy at the local Catholic church leaving his .22 Mossberg rifle in the sacristy. His friendship with alcoholic Father Furty and passion for half-Jewish neighbor Tina Spector make him question his faith as he reads Dante's Inferno.
  • Whale Steaks [1960], Whilst reading Baudelaire and working as a lifeguard, Andre receives attention from a rich older woman Mrs Mamalujian and starts an affair with Lucy, a Boston University student. Mrs Mamalujian leaves her husband and he gets Lucy pregnant; Andy learns both these facts while eating whale meat steaks.
  • African Girls [1964], Working for the Peace Corps in Nyasaland just prior to its independence from Britain, Andy is appointed headmaster of an isolated school. Popular with the pupils he speaks the local language Chinyanja. But at weekends he sleeps with African girls and eventually contracts gonorrhea.
  • Bush Baby [1968], Andy visits London, Accra, and Lagos with a girl at each location, then returns to Kampala where he meets English student Jenny whom he falls in love with and marries.
  • Leaving Siberia [1974], Andy returns from Japan via Siberia after a 4½ month rail trip to his home in Catford. His wife works for Drummonds Bank and Andy discovers that she has been having an affair with a colleague.
  • Two of Everything [1984], Still married to Jenny with a house in Clapham, he also has a house in Boston with girlfriend Eden. He visits India with both in turn. Staying in Delhi, Agra and Madras.

References

  1. ↑ www.fantasticfiction.co.uk Retrieved 28 July 2015.
  2. ↑ Kirkus Reviews Retrieved 2015-07-28.


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