Book Review: 2 of 24

Miracles of Life: An Autobiography
J.G. Ballard
Amazon link


(Quick backstory: I purchased this, along with several other Ballard novels, while I was in London a few months ago. My only regret was not buying Millennium People, since it is near-impossible to find in the States.)

After reading Concrete Island, the late J.G. Ballard gained a new fan in me. Upon learning that he had published a memoir, which was released one year before his death from prostate cancer, I made sure to track it down when I was in Europe.



If you already read Empire of the Sun, the first part may be familiar to you. Ballard had based most of Jim's experiences in a Chinese internment camp on his own when he was a preteen. He does discuss this in length, so those who read the book and nothing else, would find this information eye-opening. The same would go for those who followed Sun with The Kindness of Women, its sequel. Despite that, there was some honest insights (he even admits to not knowing what the adults did at the camps, even as he got older!) and remained engaging enough to push aside the "hey, this sounds familiar" thought for a moment.

Ballard's style was interesting. He described some gruesome details, most of them concerning the internment camp and other events he witnessed around the time. The best way to describe his style here was "bare-bones", a contrast to his novels, where no gruesome detail goes unsaid.

The book's biggest problem lied in the last several chapters. Why a huge gap between 1969 and 1987? Yes, the births of Crash and Empire of the Sun are discussed, but not as much as the book could've promised. In fact, the book's problem wasn't just that, but a great lack of detail after Ballard and his family return to England post-WWII. There was also a lack of discussion about the writing process, at least his take on it.

Compared to other memoirs and biographies, Miracles of Life came off as lean. Perhaps that was a stylistic choice on Ballard's part, since none of his novels are sprawling Ulysses-esque epics. While this book has been successful in introducing J.G. Ballard the person, there was a feeling that he wanted to say more. But if the last chapter said anything (MINOR SPOILER), he was ill at the time of writing, his attitude could've been: "I need to get the important things down". What was important? His family, the friends he made, and his journey from China to England. You can't fault a writer who gave prominence to all that in his memoir.

Readers who want more than what was said on Wikipedia, go forth and purchase this fine tome! For those seeking something substantial with great detail, bring your enthusiasm down a few notches but still read it. The more people know about J.G. Ballard, the better.