Whiteout by
Michael Blaine
hbk out January 99
This is the story of a family affair. At the centre is Maurice, the son, who has been in a private mental clinic. When he checks himself out of the clinic his father, Nathan, is dismayed, fearing the worst. He knows that Maurice will not take his medication and that the old troubles will start again. He is right. Maurice throws away his medication and buys a gun from a friend. He wants to get back into contact with his old self, with "the mind that saw the edges of things sharp and clear." This bodes ill for his family, as Nathan suspects. The hunt is on to find Maurice and the time and place could not be more difficult: winter and a blinding snowstorm. The members of the family are, rightly, very worried. Nathan wants to find and help his son, but Moira, his wife, thinks differently. Her lover, Vince, is more concerned about his own son, Lonnie, while Nathan's lover, Julia, is afraid of Maurice and has always tried to keep out of his way. Crissie, Maurice's sister, is also worried: she knows that if Maurice gets into one of his states "he doesn't even feel the cold."
This is a tense thriller. It is good, but might have been even better if it had been a straightforward narrative. The author switches from character to character, devoting a chapter to each: Maurice first, then Vince, followed by Moira, Julia, Nathan, back to Vince and so on. As a narrative technique it has been tried many times before, often satisfactorily. It is not so satisfactory here because the reader is not given time to get to know the characters. Furthermore each shift in point of view is expressed in a slightly different style, though this is only a problem in dealing with Maurice, who is seriously disturbed. It is extremely difficult to capture the thoughts and feelings of such a character in a way that carries conviction. Michael Blaine certainly deserves credit for trying. It will come as no surprise to readers to learn from the blurb that he teaches writing and literature at the City University of New York and has won prizes for his short fiction. This is his first novel.
