The Loser

Thomas Bernhard's triangular character study includes an unnamed narrator, a fictionalized Glenn Gould, and the loser of the title. The three are pianists, but only Gould succeeds in becoming a piano artist. The loser kills himself, and the narrator writes endlessly about Gould. Stylistically, the novel thrums with repetitions, bald sincerity, and blazing judgments. On Page 1, the narrator steps toward an Austrian inn; by Page 100 he is barely inside, the intervening 10 seconds having been stuffed with surreal characterizations. The final 99 percent of the book consists of a single paragraph, or perhaps more accurately, no paragraphs. The reader may tire of Bernhard's rashness in expressing his loves and (many more) hates, but the author does not permit attention to flag.