I have read all of the Davies' trilogies ( The Deptford, The Cornish and The Salterton) and I can recommend two — The Cornish and the Salterton — to David Lodge and even P.G. Wodehouse fans. But I recommend The Deptford Trilogy — composed of Fifth Business, The Manticore and World of Wonders — to everyone who can read English.

Davies φαίνεται να παρουσιάζει ένα σκοτεινό κόσμο, ο άνθρωπος είναι έρμαιο των αδυναμιών του και θα πληρώσει για αυτό αργά ή γρήγορα. Dunstan Ramsay is the narrator of both Fifth Business and World of Wonders (he is not the protagonist in the last novel). He also appears as a major character in The Manticore and as a supporting character in several other novels by Davies. Ramsay is a gentle schoolmaster with surprising depths and is probably a stand-in for Davies himself. (Since Davies has said that the main business of a writer is to be an enchanter, a weaver of spells, a magician, [2] Dempster/Eisengrim may stand for Davies.) Ramsay counsels his students to write in "the plain style," as Davies does—to highlight the story rather than the writer. Ramsay's deepening obsession with hagiology leads him to travel to Europe to meet with the Bollandists (a society of Jesuit scholars who chronicle the lives of saints) after they agree to publish one of his articles. During his trip, he develops a close relationship with elderly Jesuit priest Padre Blazon, who specializes in chronicling the earthly side of saints' lives, believing that most saints are much more flawed and human than history might choose to remember them. The characters of The Deptford Trilogy are complex and multifaceted, each with their own unique story and journey. At the center of the trilogy is Dunstan Ramsay, a man haunted by his past and struggling to come to terms with his own identity. Throughout the three novels, we see Dunstan grow and evolve, as he confronts his demons and learns to embrace his true self. The third book in Robertson Davies’s acclaimed The Deptford Trilogy, with a new foreword by Kelly Link

My Book Notes

I think that, among other things, it's a bildungsroman, if that encompasses the development of the main character and his discovery of wisdom across his whole lifetime. That could be what makes this book so wonderful. While in Mexico City on a six-month sabbatical from Colborne College, Ramsay attends a magic show put on by the mysterious illusionist Magnus Eisengrim, who is revealed to be an adult Paul Dempster. Intrigued by Eisengrim's spectacular illusions, Ramsay joins his entourage as he tours the world with his magic act, and gradually becomes close to Eisengrim's wealthy patroness Liesl, an eccentric woman with a bizarre androgynous appearance. Liesl, who becomes Ramsay's lover, senses that he has never been truly happy, having spent most of his life being overshadowed by other people whose lives have intersected with his own. To help him make sense of his role in the world, Liesl suggests that Ramsay is fated to play the part of "fifth business," a term for a supporting player in a stage show whose role can’t be easily classified, but nonetheless plays a vital role in resolving the plot. Overall, the characters of The Deptford Trilogy are some of the most memorable and compelling in modern literature, and their stories continue to resonate with readers today. Whether you’re a longtime fan of the trilogy or a newcomer to Davies’ work, there’s no denying the power and impact of these unforgettable characters. The Significance of the Title World of Wonders is the final novel in the trilogy and tells the story of Magnus Eisengrim, a magician who rose to fame in Europe during the 1920s and 1930s. Magnus is a complex character, and the novel explores his past and the events that led him to become a magician. The novel also delves into the themes of illusion and reality, as Magnus struggles to distinguish between the two. Davies γράφει για την θρησκεία, για το Α΄ΠΑγκόσμιο πόλεμο, για το εκπαιδευτικό σύστημα και την ζωή στην επαρχία του Καναδά και ξέρει τι γράφει. Όπως ξέρει τι γράφει, όταν πασπαλίζει την ιστορία του με μυριάδες λεπτομέρειες, ψψυχογραφήματα ανθρώπων, εκκλησιάσματα, για την ιστορία των αγίων και για το τσίρκο με το οποίο το έσκασε από το σπίτι του ο Πολ Ντέμπστερ.

The book was first published in the United Kingdom by Macdonald & Company in 1989, and was a runner-up for that year's Nestlé Smarties Book Prize. [2] In 2000, it was published by SeaStar Books in the United States [3] and given the Booklist Editors' Choice designation. [4] [5] Plot [ edit ]

The Deptford Trilogy

He was one of Canada’s most distinguished men of letters, with several volumes of plays and collections of essays, speeches, and belles lettres to his credit. As a novelist, he gained worldwide fame for his three trilogies: The Salterton Trilogy, The Deptford Trilogy, and The Cornish Trilogy, and for later novels Murther & Walking Spirits and The Cunning Man.