The End of the Alphabet

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From Publishers WeeklyAn abrupt death sentence given to a 50-year-old London ad exec forces an uneasy deliverance in Richardson's smartly setup, poignant tale. Given less than a month to live, Ambrose Zephyr, alphabet-obsessed since childhood, decides to spend out his last days traveling around the globe from A to Z. Ambrose and his wife, Zappora Ashkenazi (the couple is childless), begin in Amsterdam, viewing art by Velázquez and Rembrandt that has been significant to them in their loving marriage, and now looks wholly transformed. The two move between the sweet memories of past love and an unreal present, from Berlin to Chartres, the Great Pyramids of Khufu to Istanbul; when Ambrose begins to falter and they return home to their Kensington terrace flat. Reality and good manners demand that they inform their respective employers and friends of Ambrose's condition, while Zappora, a fashion editor attempting to keep a journal of the couple's last moments together, endures until the end. Richardson's tightly focused tale has panache, shadowed by a brooding suspense. (Aug.) Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From Bookmarks MagazineA Canadian book designer, C. S. Richardson delights in the alphabet, and his infatuation with everything A-to-Z shines throughout this elegant debut novel. In clear, understated prose, Richardson has written a poignant love story, a travelogue, a tribute to the good life, and a rousing call to cherish every moment. By turns humorous, heartbreaking, and inspiring, The End of the Alphabet reminded critics more of a fairy tale than a straightforward narrative, but that did not detract from the power of the story. Though a few critics found the writing pretentious, the characterizations flat, and Ambrose unsympathetic, most readers will enjoy this clever, heartfelt book.Copyright © 2004 Phillips & Nelson Media, Inc.