In Charles Souby’s novel A SHOT OF MALARIA, set in 90’s San Francisco, narrator Daniel Martin attempts to conquer a heroin addiction using methadone treatment, the hair-of-the-dog replacement therapy meant to block the effects of opioids so they’re no longer tempting.
A SHOT OF MALARIA reads like a memoir and benefits from that genre’s intimacy. Daniel is a generally likable, relatable guy, but Souby makes no excuses for his increasingly delusional protagonist, revealing paranoia, suicidal ideations, male chauvinism, casual racism, homophobia, and callousness. After discovering a loved one dead, all Daniel can think to do is “repeat to [him]self a cover story over and over, trying to refine it and make it sound more plausible each time.” His instincts for both self-preservation and self-destruction recognize a fundamental paradox of the addict’s mental state, but also of human nature.
While A SHOT OF MALARIA benefits from the memoir blueprint, it’s also susceptible to the form’s weaknesses, including the memoirist’s compulsion to dwell in minute details at the expense of pace and narrative. Every few pages, the reader sits through some variation of Daniel’s daily routine: He goes to the clinic followed by a trip to a bar, gets something to eat from “Mrs. Hot Dog,” occasionally scores cocaine or heroin, then watches movies at home while polishing off a bottle of malt liquor or vodka. The schedule rarely deviates from this norm, but the reader remains by Daniel’s side for every shaky drink, incidental conversation, and despairing thought.
Using the repetitiveness of Daniel’s life to reinforce the cyclical bindings of addiction is a valuable stylistic tool, but there’s a point where repetition becomes monotony and the reader feels as trapped as the protagonist. The line is fine, and after 400+ pages, A SHOT OF MALARIA begins to approach the wrong side of it.
However, A SHOT OF MALARIA is worth reading for its brutally honest account of addiction and its dismal (and limited) treatment options. Although the book is set in the 90’s, the reader leaves enlightened regarding a timely crisis that is still horrifying in its complexity and prevalence.
A SHOT OF MALARIA is an intimate, frank look at what it takes to overcome addiction when it seems the world is against you.
~Amanda Penn for IndieReader