Sequel to “Call Me By Your Name”
I really enjoyed the audiobook of “Call Me By Your Name“, and when I saw that there was a sequel, I was very keen to listen to it. After a bit of time, I was ready for my next running book. This one has a different narrator, which, given all the controversy around Armie Hammer, is probably for the best.
“Find Me” by André Aciman and narrated by Michael Stuhlbarg is a sequel to “Call Me By Your Name” and revisits the character Elio and his father Sami a decade after the events of the first book. Sami is on his way to visit Elio, now a concert pianist, in Rome. On the train trip from Florence, the now divorced Sami meets a photographer called Miranda decades younger than him. They have instant rapport and their new relationship accelerates rapidly. Meanwhile, years later, Elio still struggles to move on from Oliver, his first love, while Oliver grapples with his sexuality and identity as a father.
There is absolutely no question that Aciman is a talented writer, and his descriptions of the intoxication of the chemistry of Sami and Miranda’s first meeting in particular are impossible to forget. A highlight of the book was Stuhlbarg’s narration. Stuhlbarg played Sami in the film adaptation of “Call Me By Your Name”, and revisits the character of Sami with conviction. Happily, he has managed to avoid any big controversies so you can listen guilt-free.
However, this book lacked the pacing and the sweetness of the first novel. The novel is divided into four parts, however the first part takes up approximately half the book. There was something intangibly sinister about Miranda and Sami’s relationship – partly due to the age difference and partly due to Miranda’s own self-confessed and significant flaws – and while now I can see Aciman’s intention was romantic intensity, the effect was a sense of something about to go dreadfully wrong. Rather than being charmed by the couple’s extreme intimacy, I found myself repelled by it. A lot of the allusions Sami makes to his past entanglements are set out clearly, and I felt that what I had imagined was better than the reality revealed by Aciman in this book. The second part of the book was more enjoyable and Elio’s own dalliance felt much more realistic and low-stakes. However, I think I probably am not alone in feeling that the lukewarm resolution of this book didn’t live up to the exquisite heartache of the first book.
Beautifully written and beautifully narrated, but ultimately a disappointing sequel to the incredible first book.