By Kaylie Seed
Entering into the world at the perfect time, Ilze Hugo’s debut novel The Down Days follows corpse collector (and self-proclaimed “truthologist”) Faith as she tries to help an orphaned girl locate her baby brother. Hugo has created a cast of quirky characters who are all trying to survive in this new post-truth world. After a mysterious illness that residents are calling “the Laughter” sweeps the world, Sick City is a place where laughing is prohibited, masks are essential, hair is underground currency, and lip porn is all the rage. The Down Days is heavily character driven, extremely fast-paced and switches between different narrators as the story progresses, sometimes leaving the reader confused as to what is happening but Hugo always reigns it back in and then continues the plot forward. This apocalyptic novel questions life, love, and loss in what is now a post-truth society.
Along with Faith, the reader learns a great deal about Sans, an illicit goods trader. As the story progresses Sans sanity denigrates leaving him to wonder what is true and what just might be a hallucination. The reader also follows some secondary characters as they recount parts of the plot. This is not always common as there is usually one or two main characters who tell the story, but Hugo takes in multiple perspectives (even for just one chapter) to help the reader understand what is going on as the story progresses.
The Down Days focuses on themes that we all deal with on a daily basis: life, love, and loss. What is so different about The Down Days is that these themes are surrounded by a new type of world, one that is in constant decay, fear, and the unpredictable. Hugo addresses these themes by using various characters to question and try to answer them through conversations with other characters and the actions that they take throughout the novel. Hugo also includes themes like trade, culture, and death that are explored through this mysterious illness. Hugo is South African and she weaves in this culture and language into her story. It’s absolutely wonderful to get to escape to a different part of the world while not leaving your house. Hugo even includes a glossary at the back of The Down Days so that readers can educate themselves on the language used throughout the novel. Hugo’s story is one wild trip that is fast paced and full of questions surrounding humanity. With COVID-19 still a huge issue around the world (and one that is bound to create waves in our history book), Hugo’s story parallels perfectly with how the world is today.
Readers who enjoy Stephen King’s The Stand and Emily St. John Mandel’s Station Eleven will enjoy this quirky take on a worldwide pandemic.
Special thank you to Simon and Schuster Canada for the gifted e-copy of The Down Days.