''The Lying Days'' is the

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

of Nobel winning South African novelist,

Nadine Gordimer Nadine Gordimer (20 November 192313 July 2014) was a South African writer and political activist. She received the 1991 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Prize in Literature in 1991, recognized as a writer "who through her magnificent epic writin ...

. It was published in 1953 in London by

Victor Gollancz Sir Victor Gollancz (; 9 April 1893 – 8 February 1967) was a British publisher and humanitarian. Gollancz was known as a supporter of left-wing causes. His loyalties shifted between liberalism and communism, but he defined himself as a Christ ...

and New York by

Simon & Schuster Simon & Schuster () is an American publishing company and a subsidiary of Paramount Global. It was founded in New York City on January 2, 1924 by Richard L. Simon and M. Lincoln Schuster. As of 2016, Simon & Schuster was the third largest publ ...

. It is Gordimer's third published book, following two collections of short stories, ''Face to Face'' (1949), and ''

The Soft Voice of the Serpent ''The Soft Voice of the Serpent and Other Stories'' is the second short story collection by the South African writer Nadine Gordimer, and her first to be published outside South Africa. It was published on May 23, 1952, by Simon & Schuster in the ...

'' (1952). The novel is

semi-autobiographical An autobiographical novel is a form of novel using autofiction techniques, or the merging of autobiographical and fictive elements. The literary technique is distinguished from an autobiography or memoir by the stipulation of being fiction. Bec ...

, with the main character coming from a small mining town in Africa similar to Gordimer's own childhood. The novel is also a

bildungsroman In literary criticism, a ''Bildungsroman'' (, plural ''Bildungsromane'', ) is a literary genre that focuses on the psychological and moral growth of the protagonist from childhood to adulthood ( coming of age), in which character change is impo ...

"about waking up from the naivete of a small colonial town."

Reception

Reviews of ''The Lying Days'' in 1953 were generally positive. ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'' critic James Stern compared the novel favourably to the works of

Alan Paton Alan Stewart Paton (11 January 1903 – 12 April 1988) was a South African writer and anti-apartheid activist. His works include the novels ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' and '' Too Late the Phalarope''. Family Paton was born in Pietermaritzbu ...

, especially ''

Cry, the Beloved Country ''Cry, the Beloved Country'' is a 1948 novel by South African writer Alan Paton. Set in the prelude to apartheid in South Africa, it follows a black village priest and a white farmer who must deal with news of a murder. American publisher Benne ...

'', describing ''The Lying Days'' as the better of the two novels. Stern described the novel as less "novel" and more "biography", following the style and form of biographical writing. In a review in the ''

Fitchburg Sentinel The ''Sentinel & Enterprise'' is a morning daily newspaper published in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, with a satellite news bureau in Leominster, Massachusetts. The newspaper covers local news in Fitchburg, Leominster and several nearby towns in north ...

'', W. G. Rogers wrote that in ''The Lying Days'' Gordimer shows that South Africa "is a land not of a single problem, race, but of many problems which that one central issue seems to magnify and intensify." Rogers complimented Gordimer on the way she "brings her characters so surely to life", and on how she "writes so moving of love". Writing in the ''

El Paso Herald-Post The ''El Paso Herald-Post'' was an afternoon daily newspaper in El Paso, Texas, USA. It was the successor to the El Paso Herald, first published in 1881, and the El Paso Post, founded by the E. W. Scripps Company in 1922. The papers merged in 19 ...

'', F. A. Ehmann called ''The Lying Days'' "not a bad novel", adding that once it got going, Gordimer's characters become "interesting", the plot "satisfactory", and her prose "good ndhonest". But Ehmann was critical of her "experimental prose" at the beginning, saying that "this maladroit display of implied symbolism, disjointed reverie and rhetorical questions is both unnecessary and badly disjointed." In a review in the ''Petersburg Progress Index'', Joan Pollack described ''The Lying Days'' as "alive, bright and inquiring" and complimented it on its "handling ... the problems of youth

hile Hile ( ne, हिले) is a hill town located in the Eastern Part of Nepal, 13 km north of the regional center of Dhankuta Bazar. At an elevation of 1948 meters, it is the main route to other hilly districts like Bhojpur and Sankhuwasabh ...

still maintaining the beauty and adventure of life." Pollack said Gordimer "is an expert craftsman and her sensitive ability to portray the most delicate emotions should place her among the most promising newcomers today".

Reception

References

Further reading

Reviews

Scholarly criticism