The Position of Spoons by Deborah levy

Deborah Levy reflects and riffs on some of the artists, writers, critics, and household objects which inspire her.

The Position of Spoons is a compilation of previously published works.

At the start of the book is a photo of Colette. She’s sitting at a desk, her hair just so, her expression inscrutable. There’s a cat, a bouquet, a typewriter, some artful paper, a halo of light. Levy writes: ‘I could immediately see that she was enjoying the theatre of inventing herself…’ (p.3)

I think this applies to Levy. Note well the direction of her gaze, She clearly enjoys the theatre of documenting herself.

As always, I love the clarity of Levy’s writing, the surprising pairings of images, and the playful way she thinks. But I found myself restless during some of the esssays here. It’s an uneven collection.

Foe me, the highlights were the essays on her muses: Colette, Marguerite Dumas, Francesca Woodman, Violette Leduc, Elizabeth Hardwick, Ann Quinn, Lee Miller, J.G. Ballard, Paula Rego, and she’s amusing too on lemons and eggs and brothel creepers.

The Position of Spoons is a compilation of work published between 1998 and 2023. Some are teaspoons in length. It’s a slender, quick read, and reminded me of Elena Ferrante’s Incidental Inventions. The best are a joy. Migrations and A to Z baffled me. The large font puffs up the book.

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