Exploring the Written World of Paul Bailey

Paul Bailey, whose life ended last autumn at 87, was renowned for a witty genius, intense sympathy including for his deeply imperfect creations, and a sharpness that never felt cold. His novels frequently delved into the influence of recollections on human existence, propelled by witty, staccato exchanges. Apart from fiction, he also excelled as a memoirist, poet, and more—here is a guide to the volumes he authored.

Works That Offer Solace

Bailey was an outgoing person, a skilled communicator fond of lighthearted gossip, as one character notes. He and friend fellow writer Beryl Bainbridge used to view the serial drama Coronation Street and debrief by phone. This pleasure in informal dialogues is evident in his fictional works the novel Trespasses (published in 1970) and Peter Smart’s Confessions (1977). The two present a central male figure besieged by funny, annoying, over-the-top characters, usually kin whose gravitational pull is unavoidable. “What’s so great about being normal?” Ralph’s mum questions in the book Trespasses when he reveals he is gay. Similar to spending time with your smartest, cheekiest pal.

Works That Evoke Laughter and Tears

Bailey wrote superbly on old age, early and late in his career. His initial fiction At the Jerusalem (from 1967) follows the journey of Faith Gadny during her transition to a nursing home, in which other inhabitants supply compassion lacking from staff, whose concern through questions “Why not view the TV, ladies?”. In the novel before his final the title Chapman’s Odyssey (from 2011), an aged patient moves between clashing with physicians (“I consume only fine wines”, he insists after reprimands over liver tests) and being flooded by memories involving his mum, partners, classic characters including Pip by Dickens and Emma by Austen. Both books are filled with comic interactions but marked by impending endings. Throughout his novels, laughter is suspect. In At the Jerusalem, “the matron grinned, then ended it abruptly”; The character giggles with unease if her actions are questioned. Within Chapman’s Odyssey, Harry advises that “my grins are misleading”. Your laughter, nonetheless, is sincere.

To Understand the Truth Beneath the Tales

In addition to fiction, Paul Bailey served as a skilled autobiographer, issuing two personal accounts. An Immaculate Mistake (published in 1990) serves as a classic of recollection, its title derived from his mum’s statement calling him “our error” and saying he shouldn’t exist. (“Elderly, she disclosed hidden truths,” he notes. “This secret, she realized, would intrigue me.”) Here we see the roots of misguided, loving, frustrating parents in his novels. It likewise portrays a beautiful image of a gay youth in the 1940s–50s, when homosexuality was illegal, and his relatives considered it strange that a son would purchase flowers for his mum; and of an aspiring actor (Bailey acted preceding his literary career) who learned Hamlet by age fifteen. His second memoir the book A Dog’s Life (2004) centers on days with his pet Circe, his former partner David, his affection for Romania—that influenced subsequent books such as Kitty and Virgil, Uncle Rudolf, plus The Prince’s Boy—and plenty of gossip, with a story involving author Iris Murdoch dubbing a participant a “stupid cow”.

If You’re Pressed for Time

Paul Bailey’s books are mostly concise—the impactful Old Soldiers (published in 1980) is barely 100 pages—but for something shorter, try his poetry from later years. The two books Inheritance (2019) and the title Joie de Vivre (from 2022) showcase his humor, compassion, accuracy in small packages. These poems contain death and life. Two romantic motifs repeat: regarding his mum (“I feel nearer to you now—/ I must confess—/ than when you lived”) and for his civil partner Jeremy Trevathan. Within the poem Amazement, he depicts the joy of enjoying “foolish television” side by side, concluding with: “It’s amazing, somehow, to eat cheese and sip wine while the world darkens.”

For a Single Must-Read

There is little debate that Bailey’s most ambitious novel was Gabriel’s Lament, shortlisted for the Booker prize in 1986. (He served as a judge for the award in 1982, a role he disliked.) This was the book the author was most proud of, although “it drained me. It took everything out of me”. It relates the tale of Gabriel Harvey, with a missing mother and a father who becomes an unbearable snob upon receiving money, and the two might be related. It’s a depiction of 20th-century London, an account of psychological collapse, and equally humorous and sorrowful similar to his entire output. Additionally, it prompted a sequel, Sugar Cane (from 1993), that he investigated by attending brothels to observe.