The History of Luminous Motion

The History of Luminous Motion is compact and clear as a diamond, as beautiful and strange as its title. Phillip is an eight-year-old psychotic genius, attempting through science, philosophy, action, abstraction and the glittering poetry of his narrative to make sense of the world he inhabits. No easy solutions here; there's no way of knowing what is "real" and what isn't, and the glib jargon of the policemen, psychologists and Juvenile Correction Officers at the end serves merely to emphasise the mystery of Phillip's condition. Reading this book, I was reminded of several others, notably Shirley Jackson's We Have Always Lived in the Castle and Arthur Machen's story "The White People" - both of which weave beauty, insanity and youth into their heroines' dark, potent and obsessive autobiographies. But The History of Luminous Motion, while it may be more closely related to these works than to much else, is unique in its evocation of a mind at once more-than-adult in its intellectual capacity and infant in its emotional solipsism; the philosophical conversations Phillip holds with his friends Rodney and Beatrice are among the funniest and most deeply disturbing parts of the book. Perhaps most remarkable of all is the seamlessness of both the character and the story - you never forget for a moment that Phillip is only eight years old, any more than you forget the power, the sensitivity or the sickness of his mind. The ending is sudden, elliptical and heart-rending. Buy it and be haunted.

This is truly an exceptional and unexpected book - one that leaves a strange, haunting feeling with the reader...something like what one experiences after having read "The Stranger" (Camus) ...although it actually shares more striking similarities with "Story of The Eye" (Bataille). The strange worldliness of the children in this book, while disturbing, seems somehow natural...and the writing is fluid, learned and simple - a very fulfilling read.

I began this book while waiting for my maseusse to arrive to relieve a bad migraine and was upset she was coming. I did not want to put it down. I have given over a dozen copies away and read it five times. It is perhaps the most exquisite writing I have read in contemporary terms, not to mention handling such dark territory. Absolutely superb.

To say that this book changed my life would be a gross understatement; If anyone hungers for the exquisitely unique voice of the California school of contemporary fiction, this is unequivocally it. Bradfield drags you through the abject solitude of his protagonist, Philip, with amazing vision and depth, and in the end leaves you winded with sighs of recognition for the dynamic state of childhood we all remember. The lucidity of Nicholson Baker, coupled with the poetry and darkness of Poe. Phenomenal.

Scott Bradfield takes the protagonist on a visual journey that leaves the reader floating, saddened, and yet beautifully inspired. A truly superb read for someone who seeks abstract beauty in reading.