Barney's Version
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 Cover of the first American edition |
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| Author | Mordecai Richler |
|---|---|
| Cover artist | John Scully (first edition photograph); Spencer Francey Peters (first edition design) |
| Country | Canada |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | Knoph Canada (first edition, hardcover); Chatto and Windus (first U.K. edition, hardcover) |
| Released | 16 Sept 1997 (Canada); 25 Sept 1997 (U.K.) |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover) |
| Pages | 417 pages (first Canadian edition, hardcover); 424 (first U.K. edition, hardcover) |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-676-97078-8 (first Canadian edition, hardcover); 0-7011-6272-4 (first U.K. edition, hardcover) |
| Preceded by | Jacob Two-Two's First Spy Case |
| Followed by | Dispatches from the Sporting Life |
Barney's Version is a novel written by Canadian author Mordecai Richler, published by Knopf Canada in 1997. The story is written in the style of an autobiography of Barney Panofsky, and recounts his life varying detail. At the end of the book he is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease, which explains his memory losses (corrected by his son Michael through the use of foot-notes), and his repeatedly reminding himself of the name of the utensil used to strain spaghetti (a colander). Barney can be viewed as an unreliable narrator, in that his recollections go from lucid to ludicrous with his varying mental states.
[edit] Plot summary
[edit] Elements
Spoiler warning: Plot and/or ending details follow.
- The Death of Boogie - At the end of the novel we discover that the bones of Boogie have been found, and that he might have died due to being dropped onto a mountain by a water bomber. In reality, the possibility of a person being scooped up by a water bomber is nil, contrary to the inference in the book as well as popular urban legend. The water bomber referred to by the author is the Canadair CL 215, designed and built by Canadair of Montreal (now Bombardier Aerospace). The water scoops (or "probes") of the CL 215 measure 3 inches by 5 inches, and the aircraft entered service in 1969. The Canadair/Bombardier reference link below refers to the Bombardier Aerospace CL 415, the latest version of this aircraft, noting that the airframe remains relatively unchanged in the latest version, with primarily the power plants, avionics and cockpit construction being updated, not the design of the water scoops. The disappearance of Boogie in the book is in the second section, "The Second Mrs. Panofsky, 1958-1960." As the CL 215 did not see service until 1969, the water scoops on the CL 215 being too small combined with no other water bombers being operated in Quebec during this historical period, it is impossible that Boogie was scooped up by a water bomber, although this is what the reader is led to believe. With Barney Panofsky's wandering recount of dates and events, the time period of the water bombers first appearing on the lake could be erroneous. Given Barney's penchant for obfuscation and the impossibility of Boogie being scooped up by a water bomber in 1960, Boogie's death remains unresolved. The question remains whether this was an intentional technical and historical error, or whether the author intended to fool the reader into believing an urban legend.
- Possibly intentional ambiguity - When directly questioned about the death of Boogie as a plot device in the book, Richler appears to evade direct resolution of his motivation and intent. When interviewed whether he had devised the plot device early, or whether it came to him as a last-minute resolution to complete the story, he does not answer directly.
[edit] Characters in "Barney's Version"
- Bernard "Boogie" Moscovitch - Barney's best friend, whom he was judged innocent of murdering.
- Terry McIver - Barney's friend turned sworn enemy. It is McIver's published memoirs that drive Barney to write his versions of events.
- Miriam - Barney's third wife, who leaves him for Blair. Barney always hopes that she will come back to him.
- '"The Second Ms. Panofsky" - Barney's second wife, who leaves him at the time of the disappearance of Boogie.
- Clara Charnofsky - Barney's first wife, whom he met in Paris, and whose journals from their time in Paris become best-selling feminist literature.
- Leo Bishinsky - Barney's friend from Paris, who became a famed artist.
- Cedric - Barney's rich, black friend from Paris.
- Morty Herscovitch- Barney's doctor in Montreal
- Blair - A draft-dodging American who is taken in by the Panofskys and eventually marries Barney's third wife, Miriam.
