A wild tale of staying put

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VOYAGE TO THE END OF THE ROOM

By Tibor Fischer

Counterpoint, $23, 251 pages

Tibor Fischer, an English novelist of Hungarian descent, courted controversy a few months ago when he wrote a damning review of Martin Amis' novel "Yellow Dog." In a British newspaper, Mr. Fischer alleged that Mr. Amis' new book is bad -- so bad it's like catching one's uncle in an act of public indecency. Such an egregious insult naturally begs the question: But is Mr. Fischer any better?

Clearly it's a question Mr. Fischer wants us to ask, for as he went on to note in the review, he too has a new novel in bookstores -- published in Britain, no less, on the same day as "Yellow Dog."

"Voyage to the End of the Room" revolves around a young London woman named Oceane. As we learn in the book's opening pages, Oceane has stumbled into some life-altering good luck. Through a flukey chain of events, she became wealthy in a single afternoon; wealthy enough, at least, to live very comfortably in a modest neighborhood and still have plenty of money in the bank.

Oceane also does freelance graphic-design work, so she continues to earn an income without the inconvenience of leaving home. Ever. Why should she venture outside? "It numbs you, it stuffs you like a turkey with everyday nonsense: hundreds of mundanities clog, fog and then stop your mind."

For diversion, however, she commissions a travel agent to arrange dinner-party "vacations" in her house, at which she can admire the mock skyline of a foreign capital -- Helsinki, for instance -- while sampling reindeer tartare and chatting with native Finns.