Sweet Dreams

Sweet Dreams has long been one of my favorite books, one of the few I've ever cared to reread. The opening section, in which the protagonist seamlessly glides into what we come to understand is heaven, and then discovers its many delights (being able to fly if you want to...or not, 5-star restaurants) is without equal in anything else I've read: elegant, light, perfectly executed, completely delightful. Then, as the story develops, the protagonist goes through apprenticeship, love, early success and fame, midlife crisis, and resolution. It's always done with a light and comic touch, yet deals with profound questions. How Frayn was able to conceive of the story and carry it off is remarkable. It's a crime that this book is not in print, particularly when writers like Anthony Burgess and Margaret Drabble have praised it as one of the best British novels of the late 20th century. Hunt for a used copy--your search will be well repaid!

Frayn paints a hilarious and riotous dreamscape featuring a loveable hero who gets to realise his every potential and more, from being a witty dinner-party conversationalist to finding out that he can fly...Delightful and whimsical, I've yet to come across anyone who has not enjoyed this book.