This fourth volume in the Patrick Melrose quintology (or as Douglas Adams used to say, "a trilogy in five parts") seemed a bit more directionless than the previous three installments.

That, and the hyper-intelligent children who speak like 40-year-old men lessened the enjoyment of this one for me, as well as the affair that went nowhere.

But then, in the last quarter, the book fell into its true purpose—Patrick's relationship with his ailing mother—and the book slapped me hard right between the eyes, likely because I'm in a very similar situation with my own mother.

I truly believe some books find you when you need them, and this was the book I needed to find right now.

For that, it earns 4-stars. ( )

I've been impressed throughout by the honesty of these stories. They go places you wouldn't expect. The world in Mother's Milk is rather bleak, with each adult caught up in their own dramas and old patterns of behaviour, or else getting worn down by the dramas of others. I could see little bits of myself in each character, which gave pause for thought. The portrayal of the various mothers in the story was brilliant, giving rise to a number of achingly sad moments. ( )

I came across this book as it has a place on the 1001-list. I liked listening to it. But because it is part 4 of a series, it was quite hard in the beginning to get hold on the circumstances, characters and what was going on. Why were people reacting the way they were.
Nevertheless it was an ibteresting book to read, put a finger on some sore spots, was at times quite recognizable in terms of situations and reactions :-) ( )

Big disappointment! Lost completely the drive that made the first three novels such an enjoyable read. Starts with the boring telling by Patrick's son, only to continue with Patrick's which also lost the power it had before. Superfluous novel. ( )

This is another book I read because it was on the 1001 list. It was also short-listed for the Booker. While it's a somewhat enjoyable book, and competently written, I'm not sure why it deserves either of those honors.

It's the story of a British family, father Patrick, mother Mary, their two young sons, and Patrick's mother. Each August, Patrick, Mary and their sons spend August at Patrick's mother's villa in the south of France. Unfortunately for them, his mother is in the process of donating the villa (and indeed almost all of her fortune) to a New Age guru to use as a spiritual retreat. As a barrister, Patrick carries out his mother's request to effect the transfers. His actions are against his better judgment, and against his own self-interest as her son. We follow the family through three summers in the south of France, and a fourth summer in America.

The book is told in four parts, one for each summer. The first is narrated by the older child, who is 5 or 6 at the time. Ensuing narrations are from the pov of Patrick and of Mary.

The book is satirical--particularly of America and Americans and New Age adherents. It's sometimes funny, but I felt a lot of anger and bitterness underneath the humor. As one reviewer on Amazon said, "If you dislike your spouse and regret having children and really hate your mother, you might enjoy it." ( )

Patrick Melrose novel four shows Patrick as a father and in competition with his youngest son (Thomas) for the affection of his wife Mary. We also spend considerable time getting the point of view of things from the perspective of his eldest son Robert (who is remarkably intelligent). Parenting, adultery and sibling rivalry figure prominently. Of the four [novels], I've enjoyed this one the most. Robert's take on being born is priceless! ( )

Certainly well written, and a good story, but a little too introspective for my taste. I liked the parts that the children narrate, but I got a bit tired of the self indulgent stream of consiousness commentary by Patrick. Not sure if i will read the rest of the series. Probably not. ( )

2005 book by British author, Edward St. Aubyn is a humorous and sad story of the Melrose family. As the title hints, it really looks at family relationships; sons to mothers, mothers to sons and wives and husbands all set in the beginning of the 2000s. I really enjoyed Robert's first chapter where he tells the reader his experience of being born. Really, these two children Robert and his younger brother Thomas are really too much. Their language and thoughts are quite beyond belief but very funny and a look at the effects of family on the children. Patrick, father and husband is the most unlikable character but really is kind of the character everyone else revolves around. Towards the end of the book, it came to me that Patrick reminds me of Harry Angstrom (Rabbitt of Updike creation) and Harry's struggles. The final sections, has the family traveling to America to visit the relatives and spend their vacation. The author depicts Americans as fat people living off industrialized food. I guess that means they don't eat industrialized food in Europe. Here's a quote "Factory farming doesn't stop in the slaughterhouse, it stops in our bloodstreams, after the Henry Ford food missiles have hurtled out of their cages into our open mouths and dissolved their growth hormones and their genetically modified feed into our increasingly wobbly bodies. Even when the food isn't 'fast', the bill is instantaneous, dumping an idle eater back on the snack crowded streets. In the end, we're on the same conveyor belt as the featherless, electrocuted chickens."and "The rest of country is just people in huge cars wondering what to eat next." Patrick battles alcohol, drugs, adultery throughout the story. I liked this statement on alcoholism; "Practically anything was less complicated than being a successful alcoholic." So true. And finally another line that I really loved just because we people in Minnesota like to complain of the weather "The climate here is impossible: we're up to our waists in snow until the middle of May, and two weeks later we're living in Vietnam." Anyway, this was well written, funny yet very insightful and sad in many ways story of family relationships in contemporary times. ( )

While it can stand alone in a way that I don't think the first three of the Patrick Melrose novels could, Mother's Milk is built on those novels' horrible legacy of incest, drug abuse, and neglect, much as Patrick's own problems can never be separated from those of his parents. Unlike the previous three novels, which all take place over a day or two in the life of the protagonist, this one unfolds over three consecutive summers as the paradise of the French summer house is slowly lost. Though it's hard to like any of the characters, I couldn't stop reading. ( )

Judging by the goodreads reviews (which are usually very reliable), this book seems to have been mis-marketed. Readers complain that the characters are unpleasant (which you should know going in, I admit) and that St. Aubyn is 'too much of a stylist,' which sounds to me like saying a composer is 'too musical' or a basketball player is 'too athletic.' From a straight description, you might think this is akin to, say Gerard Woodward's semi-autobiographical trilogy: addiction, family issues, well-written etc. From the blurbs, you might think it's a soap opera (Sam Lipsyte couldn't do better than 'harrowing entertainment'? I guess it's 'entertainment' if you assume that serious art is only produced in American MFA programs).

So, prospective reader, know that St. Aubyn's work is a salad, and that the ingredients are:

* Proust's essayistic novel form. As with Proust, you have to read carefully.
* Wilde's utterly unrealistic, yet brilliant, dialogue. As with Wilde, he's sometimes too clever for his own good.
* Waugh's ambivalent upper class satire.
* Richard Yates' beautifully styled misanthropy. As with Yates, it can all get a little tiring.

This is not to say he's the next Proust or Wilde, of course. But he's at least on a level with Yates.

This novel is beautifully and intelligently crafted. The opening section - told through the eyes of a 5 year old - should be ridiculously quirky, but is one of the best thirty or so pages published so far this century in English. St Aubyn clearly knows that the whole thing could be disastrous, and plays around with this fact. The shifting points of view throughout the novel are quite knowing, as well; St Aubyn refuses to insult his readers' intelligence by dumbing his work down and using old moves from the realism rulebook. At the same time, he holds on to what is valuable in the realistic tradition: a respect for the world outside of literature, the great potential of ironic narration, and the ability to put his readers into perspectives they ordinarily would not take up.

In short: an almost ideal blend of self-reflection, social thought and artistry.

The prose is so clear that it's often too easy to read: take your time, and try to understand exactly what's going on. It helps to have read the other books in the series, but it's probably not necessary. If you know this stuff going in, you'll hopefully get more out of the book than some reviewers seem to have done. ( )

I heard an interview with St. Aubyn and wondered how I had somehow missed his books completely. Well-written and clever, this novel is rough going at times as main character struggles with his rage at his mother, who has decided to leave her estate to a charismatic Irish leader and his new-age organization. We move from the point of view of the children to the adults. The kids are lovely and well-defined, the adults...not so much. The wife is a cypher and fairly one-dimensional and I was disappointed with her utter helplessness. While admiring the structure, the sardonic wit and the language, I was glad to leave the claustrophobic mindset of the main character as he drinks himself into forgetfulness and oblivion. ( )

This book is at times rather wickedly funny in its derision towards upper class parents and their cluelessness. At the same time, there's a bit too much self pitying amongst the middle class who don't seem to realize how well off they still are in comparison to most of the parents in the world at large. It's a rather sad statement on inheritance and euthanasia as well. The relationships are all strained and the plot events are at times a little too predictable. Still, there are some really funny moments in this one that make it an interesting read, though it is far from life changing. The dialogue is the best part usually as well as the perspective of the eldest son which is revisited every summer. In addition, the characters are written rather well and the writing style is quite engaging.

Some favorite quotes:

pg. 33 "Well," said Seamus, "I trained as a nurse with the Irish National Health."

"I'm sure that was an adequate substitute for being buried alive," said his father.

pg. 45 "When you're a child, nobody leaves you alone. If he ran away now, they would send out a search party, round him up, and entertain him to death."

pg 76 "Who was that dreadful child?" said Patrick. "I don't think I've ever seen such a sinister face. He looks like Chairman Mao on steroids."

pg. 93 "God," said Patrick. "If we got together, there would be a terrifying amount of boredom and loneliness in the room."

"Or maybe they have opposite electrical charges and they'd cancel each other out."

"Are you positively or negatively bored?"

"Positively," said Julia. "And I'm absolutely and positively lonely."

"You may have a point then," smiled Patrick. "There's something very negative about my boredom. We're going to have to conduct an experiment under strictly controlled conditions to see whether we achieve a perfect elimination of boredom or an overload of loneliness"

pg. 95 "That was the trouble with not being a psychopath. Every avenue was blocked."

pg. 111 "Exactly. Everyone thinks they're on the Earth, even when they're on somebody else's moon."

"But the Earth goes around the sun," said Robert. "Who's on the sun?"

"The sun is uninhabitable," said Patrick, relieved that they had traveled so far from the original motive of his comment. "It's only plot is to keep us going around and round."

pg. 219 "Listen," said Patrick, trying to recover as unobtrusively as possible from finding the Devil on the guest list, "When you can't move, can't speak, can't read, and know that you're losing control of your mind, depression is not a disease, it's the only reasonable response. It's cheerfulness that would require a glandular dysfunction or a supernatural force to explain it."

( )

Finally made it to the last book in his collected novels. This was so much better than the last one, "Some Hope," which was just not as well-written or as interesting as the first two. Mother's Milk is by far the best of them all: beautiful evocative writing, compelling explorations of the way language shapes (and distorts) our perceptions and of the difference between self and non-self. Beginning with Robert, and his acute description of being born, being torn away from the mother, and continuing from the perspectives of his brother, mother, and father - the latter the one who was so horribly abused in the first novel, and such an addict in the next two. ( )

The story develops over the course of 4 summers, as the family unit increases to four. The narration follows Robert at first, an uncanny young boy, and then his father, who is falling apart.

Many themes are covered in the book, mostly to do with the family. From the tension caused to a couple with the advent of children, to grievences generations old, the author shows us that the family is not merely a product of its parts, but of its past experiences, both positive and negative. Patrick and Mary, like many couples, are dealing with three generations of problems - their own, those concerning their children and aging parents. As a plea for euthenasia is expressed, a range of feelings also come up - from a sense of guilt, to duty mixed with pity.

The four main characters are very different. Robert's view of the world is remarkably clued in, especially as adults dismiss his ability to understand developing situations and to glean information from overheard conversations. He seems to have the weight of the world on his shoulders, this becomes even more apparent with the birth of his younger brother, Thomas. Thomas is a happier child, though no less observant. He shares an affinity with his mother , an affinity shared between many very young children and their mothers, at the time when they have their mother's undivided attention. Patrick is jealous, a little lost, he has been usurped by his own flesh and blood. He takes refuge in prescription drugs and alcohol, but too soon that is not enough. Mary is the "thinnest" character in the book, seemingly only made whole by her role as mother, a role she throws herself into. While we do not see much of Mary the woman, in Mary the mother we do see her core strength, the lioness protecting her cubs.

Identity is another topic brought up in the book. Perhaps our identity is as much what we aren't as what we are. Mary is determined to be more present, unlike her own mother, Patrick rejects his mother's love for new age philosophy, much as his own mother rejected her own mother's wealth and standing. Indeed, in the final stage of the book, Thomas is going through his own denial phase, strongly negating the previous mark put to him.

I would recommend the book, the structure gives a freshness to the family drama, and the choice of focussing on the summer holidays, a time when the family spends the majority of their time together, helps to heighten the tension. All in all, Mother's Milk is a book that will hook you quickly, but will also make you evaluate the relationships you have with your nearest and dearest. ( )

Oh, my. Powerful stuff. Such obnoxious mothers (and some obnoxious others too). Don’t think my mid-life crisis was anything like as hellish as this. My only problem is the surreal preciousness of the two children. ( )

An interesting novel, told from the point of view of a number of different family members, Robert (son), Patrick and Mary (parents). Mother's Milk puts the reader in the place of these different people very clearly and does this very well. The general humour of family life, even when things are tough, comes across very well and the humour you can find in bitterness comes across. Robert is a child older than his years, but this works fairly well. Patrick's chapters are him feeling sorry for himself, for his problems with his relationship with Mary, the loss of his French family home, the decline of his mother etc - his voice is introspective and he wallows. A good read. ( )

Painfully sharp and at times very funny.... Looking forward to more by the same author ( )

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. I thought St. Aubyn displayed a very creative narrative. I appreciated his humor and I definitely want to read the earlier books about the Melrose family. As always, I find the comments of the other reviewers very entertaining. I especially like the comments from those that couldn't finish the book but felt compelled to write a review. A review of what, Chapter 1? ( )

Part way through this book I found myself no longer caring that the characters were so unremittingly dreadful and instead realizing that I was probably reading some of the best writing that I had ever encountered. And this writing in turn drew me back to the characters. The writing rendered them fascinating if no less repellant and no more likable. Usually I am trying to connect with character and story, to have them resonate in some transparent way with my own life or my understanding of life, and in finding this resonance, I apply the modern day "liked this, thumbs up" and move on. St. Aubyn asks more and gets more from the reader. I have no idea why he focuses on the tortuous and claustrophobic workings of these mostly irredeemable lives, but he succeeds marvelously in making me want to understand their stories. ( )

Perhaps I don’t like books which are praised for being humourous. For sure, I don’t like books which are told from the perspective of children. This book is, at least partly, told from the perspective of a baby, but apparently the baby speaks to us in an adult voice (does that make it funny?). I think it isn’t even that original to describe your own birth. ( )

Brilliantly written. ( )

Enjoyable book about a dysfuctional upper middle class family in meltdown. Patrick , the father is bitter, unsurprisingly, as his mother has given and will leave the rest, of her not inconsiderable assets, to a new age (possibly fraudulent) foundation leaving him relativly impoverished. Why doesn't he fight this? well he is a lawyer and was manipulated into making the arrangements watertight. His elder son is a precocious 6 year old who narrates much of the book .He has been displaced by his younger brother in the affections of his motherhood obsessed mother.
I am not convinced that the child narration works - the child's thought patterns are just too adult for even the most intelligent six year old, and,as well, I cannot see anyone disinheriting himself so completely when he knows his mother has a dementing illness.
Well written, intelligent and thought prevoking ( )

Doesn't quite reach the heights or the lows of his earlier trilogy, but still wonderful. It takes us to Patrick, about whom Some Hope narrates, through his marriage and fatherhood, as intimated in the ending of the trilogy. The irony of his wife's over maternalism is not lost. ( )

As might be expected from the title, this is a novel which centres largely around motherhood, mothering and the effect that it has on people's lives.

The Melrose family is in freefall. The father, Patrick is torn between feelings of betrayal and compassion for his mother - betrayal because he feels that she has always been utterly selfless to everyone except her own family, and it now looks as if he will be disinherited, and compassion because of her deteriorating mental and physical health. Additionally, he feels neglected by his wife, who has just given birth to their second son, and is totally wrapped up in the demands of motherhood. In an effort to console himself, he lurches from one vice to another.

His wife Mary feels that she has lost all sense of self, and knows that her husband is frustrated at what he perceives as her obsession with being a good mother. Mary is determined that she will give her children the love and affection that her own mother failed to give her.

Their five year old son Robert is a child wise beyond his years, and at the start of the book, he is a little put out by the arrival of a new baby brother.

The book is told in the third person but most of the sections (there are four, told over four consecutive summers) focus on events from just one person's point of view. I have mixed feelings about it; it started off promisingly, but eventually I was happy to finish it.

There is actually very little plot, although this was not a problem for me. The book simply paints a portrait of a family which has fallen on hard times, financially and emotionally. All of the characters were certainly very well drawn and believeable, but after a while I stopped caring about what happened to them. There were however some moments of genuinely bitter humour, and I laughed out loud on a couple of occasions. However, this is not a work of comedy. It was well written and credible, but ultimately, it left me fairly cold. ( )

A beautifully written book by a master stylist of the English language. St Aubyn manages to vividly and realistically portrait three very different characters - a precocious and under-estimated child, a troubled and narcissistic father and a mother who is too wrapped up in mothering to have any other identity - to the point that while you may not like them, you certainly believe them and are able to read your way into their viewpoints very easily.
The storyline - about a family that continues to fracture along each generation, and how we are all selfish in our own ways - is fun to read. And the prose! The book deserves four stars alone for wonderful lines such as 'She got into bed and was covered by a thin layer of broken rest.' I think I will probably be coming back to this book in a few years time to see if my changing perspective on life colours my view of this book and how the author handles the topic of family interaction. ( )