Last of my three Booker shortlisted birthday novels, and another absolutely brilliant, original book. Switzy is the last few days in the life of a guy heading to his assisted death, told in the first person as his brain gradually unravels.
It’s a clever approach, as a combination of memory loss combined with the inevitable internal retrospective of his life means we gradually learn just pieces of backstory. Loads of gaps remain throughout, allowing the reader to impart their own views onto his personal history and character.
And the build up to the assisted death itself is mesmerising; I found it increasingly moving and claustrophobic. As a supporter of the right to an assisted death, it still gives pause for thought and insight into how those last few precious days and hours could feel.
Fabulous.
