The Notable Brain of Maximilian Ponder

Maximilian Ponder shut himself away for thirty years in an attempt to record every memory he ever had. Now he lies dead, surrounded by his magnum opus - The Catalogue - an exhaustive set of notebooks and journals that he hopes will form the map of one human mind.

But before his friend Alex Last can call the police and inform them of Maxz's death, one rather gruesome task remains in order for Max's project to be complete. Interspersed with sections from The Catalogue, Alex tells the story of the man he knew - a man whose life changed dramatically the day he buried a dead labrador and fought a duel with his father.

What emerges is both the story of a friendship and also of a lifelong obsession, a quest to understand the human mind, memory and what constitutes a life.

Short-listed for Costa Prize; First Novel Award 2013 (UK)

“Written with gusto - a daring, quirky tale.”

An original and quirky debut BIG ISSUE IN THE NORTH
GOOD BOOK GUIDE

Dr J.W. Ironmonger is 55 years old and works in software consultancy, which often takes him abroad. He is married with grown up children and lives in Shropshire. THE NOTABLE BRAIN OF MAXIMILIAN PONDER is his first novel.

On his twenty-first birthday, Maximilian Ponder shut himself away from the world to embark on his greatest project: an attempt to record every memory in his brain. It should have taken three years. But three long decades pass. Now Max lies dead, surrounded by his magnum opus - The Catalogue - a library of notebooks and journals that he hoped would form the map of a single human mind. And before his friend Adam can call the police and inform them of Max's death, one rather gruesome task remains . . . Now Adam tells the story of the man he knew - a man whose life changed dramatically the day he buried a dead Labrador and fought a duel with his father. What emerges is both the story of a friendship and also of a lifelong obsession, a quest to understand how we construct the story of our lives.

Maximilian Ponder shut himself away for thirty years in an attempt to record every memory he ever had. Now he lies dead, surrounded by his magnum opus - The Catalogue - an exhaustive set of notebooks and journals that he hopes will form the map of one human mind.But before his friend Alex Last can call the police and inform them of Maxz's death, one rather gruesome task remains in order for Max's project to be complete. Interspersed with sections from The Catalogue, Alex tells the story of the man he knew - a man whose life changed dramatically the day he buried a dead labrador and fought a duel with his father.What emerges is both the story of a friendship and also of a lifelong obsession, a quest to understand the human mind, memory and what constitutes a life.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.