Less

Riding through the desert, Less wonders how a camel could possibly love anything. He is traveling with nine other people, though they have lost five since leaving Marrakech.

After dealing with a chaotic immigration queue upon arriving in Morocco, Less meets his old friend Lewis. They discuss Less’s time in Paris and avoid talking about Freddy. The trip to Marrakech is, ostensibly, to celebrate the birthday of a woman named Zohra. At the hotel, the assorted guests have been drinking most of the day and into the night. One guest, an actress, drinks so much that she struggles to wake up the next morning to leave for the Sahara. She is left behind. Less, Lewis, and the other guests meet their guide, Mohammed. The country is enduring a heatwave, and the bus ride through the Atlas Mountains is sweltering. Less remembers Freddy’s dream of visiting Tahiti, which seemed “so resorty” to Less, who preferred India. They never talk about Tahiti again, but Less knows that Freddy has gone there on his honeymoon. Less meets more of the invited guests, including a couple who are both war reporters. Zohra has an impossible-to-place accent; born in Morocco, she left for England as a child. Less recognizes in her some deep sadness. She does not look close to 50 and is a big fan of Less’s books. Less tells her about his new, recently rejected novel. As the tour visits a castle on a hill, one of the war reporters begins to vomit. By the next morning, the war reporters are unable to continue and will rejoin the group later. As they drive through the desert, Less sits beside Zohra. They talk about romance and getting old and fat. She encourages Less to let go of himself to become fat with her and Lewis. From the front of the bus, another guest falls sick.

By the time they reach the camels, only Less, Lewis, Zohra, Mohammed, and Josh, a “British tech whiz” (130), remain. They take bets on who will fall sick next, and Less again refuses to talk about Freddy. Eventually they reach the encampment, a fire pit surrounded by luxurious pillows, carpets, and tents. By the time they eat dinner, the British tech whiz has fallen ill. Lewis, Less, Zohra, and Mohammed eat and drink together. Eventually only Lewis and Less remain. Lewis reveals that he is divorcing his husband; they have amicably agreed to part after two decades together, even though “things have been really good” (133). Lewis views the 20 years of marriage as a success, one that is now in the past. Less is aghast; he considered Lewis and his husband proof that gay men can enjoy a lasting relationship. Lewis’s husband is set to remarry, and Lewis will read a poem at the ceremony. He talks about Freddy’s wedding. He reveals that, on the night before the ceremony, Freddy locked himself in his bathroom. But Less is not listening. Lewis goes to his tent and leaves Less outside to think about his life. Even when he goes to bed, Less cannot sleep. He realizes that he has not truly been alone during the whole trip. Less sleeps and dreams of his rejected novel.

When Less wakes, a sandstorm rages around the camp. Less, Lewis, and Zohra gather in the dining tent and spend the day drinking beer and playing cards. By the next morning, Lewis has also come down with the sickness. Mohammed offers to drive them back to a nearby town, where the recovering guests are waiting. Zohra refuses and asks for her and Less to be taken somewhere “we wouldn’t believe” (137). Mohammed takes them to a facsimile of a Swiss ski town, an alpine resort hidden away in the desert. It is Zohra’s birthday and, in two hours, it will be Less’s birthday. They drink together in the hotel bar and, when Zohra talks about her own failed relationship, Less realizes that she is a lesbian. Zohra laments that Janet, her girlfriend, fell in love and left, ruining both of their lives. With half an hour to midnight, Zohra has gotten so drunk that Less and Mohammed must carry her to her bed. Less talks to Mohammed, who speaks seven languages. They converse in faltering German; Mohammed’s grasp of the language is markedly better than Less’s, whose birthday is rapidly approaching. Less is given a free drink by the bartender. Mohammed does not drink but he offers to share his hashish with Less, who declines. Mohammed reveals that though he makes money from being a tour guide, he is a writer and a great fan of Less’s first book.

Less thinks about Freddy packing his bags in Tahiti; Freddy was “always the packer” (141). This, Less reasons, is why he has not called to wish Less a happy birthday. Less stands on the balcony, looking out over the frozen town. He will soon travel to India, where he will have to eviscerate his novel. Standing there, Less finds himself “too numb to feel pity” (142) for his novel’s protagonist. He can feel pity for Robert, for Marian, for Javier, for Bastian, for Zohra, for Janet, or for Mohammed. But he cannot feel pity for Swift, about whom the novel is written, any more than he can feel pity for himself. He envisions how his novel should be: Swift should not be a hero but a fool.

A little boy sits in an airport lounge, so bored that he searches around for amusement. He watches an American who is about to board the wrong plane. As the American prepares to board, the boy watches as he becomes engrossed in his notepads and then almost leaves his bag behind.

At his writer’s retreat above the Arabian Sea, Less is told a list of the animals he may encounter and how to live with them. He is shown around the premises by a woman named Rupali, the manager. During the ride over, Less was enchanted to see the contrast between the beautiful scenery and the ever-present garbage. He is shown to a cottage and surprised to learn this is a Christian retreat center, which he finds a little deflating. He is given a note from Carlos, asking Less to meet him as soon as he arrives. In the coming days, Less familiarizes himself with the resort. He notes the competing sounds from the local religious groups and requests a tailor and a freestanding desk. He repairs the rips in his suit before he begins to write. He meets the eccentric local pastor, who encourages him to ask “why” about everything and introduces him to the tailor. When Less finally does sit down to write, people arrive to measure him for a new desk. A new chair is also brought, almost identical to the last, and when Less sits in it he finds himself stuck to the fresh lacquer.

Later that evening he complains to Rupali that a crowd gathered around his cottage for a picnic. He was constantly interrupted and unable to write. Per the pastor’s advice, he asks Rupali why this happened, and she tells him that it is the only place that the Christians can go. Less feels ashamed that he had contemplated complaining and even booking into another hotel. He praises the freshly made food. When she tells him an anecdote, he wonders how he will ever tell this polite woman that the retreat is not a place he can write his novel. As they talk, the lights go out. They return every few minutes, just long enough to allow Less to see a dog running away with a piece of blue fabric in its mouth: his suit. Stumbling into the cottage, he stands on the sewing needle.

Less wakes up in a hospital room. He pieces together his memories of the previous night: his scream, the pastor running in, and the rush to the hospital. An x-ray confirmed that he fractured his ankle and that half a needle was buried in the sole of his foot. He was given a bed and various anesthetics prior to surgery in the morning. The needle was removed and his foot placed in a cast. The painkillers sent Less to sleep. Upon waking, he began piecing together his memories. On seeing that he is awake, the nurse fetches the surgeon, who asks Less why a man has a needle in his room. There is an apology note from the retreat, containing the tattered remains of his favorite blue suit. Less is told that he cannot return to the retreat, that he must rest for three weeks, and that his friend is coming to collect him. Carlos arrives and collects Less from the hospital. He seems happy to see Less; they are heading to an as-yet unopened resort, one that is fully staffed. Carlos is departing for a few weeks but will return; in the meantime, he has entrusted Less’s care to his staff. Before he departs, he asks two questions: if Less still has Robert’s old letters and if he has heard from Freddy. Less answers yes to the first and no to the second. Carlos departs, assuring Less that everything is OK. As the porter speaks about Less’s bags, Less tries to decode Carlos’s true purpose, but all he can detect is a hint of fear in his old enemy’s voice. Less is given a suite with a view of the ocean. The unopened hotel is dull, and Less misses the distracting hive of activity and life that was the previous retreat. The only distraction is the porter, Vincent, but Less tries to put aside his nascent crush and focus—at last—on writing.

Less works to turn his protagonist from a tragic hero into a sympathetic fool. As his foot heals, he is offered the chance to go on a boat outing. During the ride, he sees dolphins and flying fish. Then they arrive at an island coated in white sand, a place that is “unmistakably paradise” (161). He is left there by the boat and worries that he has been stranded—a devious plot by Carlos—until another boat arrives. Carlos is onboard, and the crew prepare a campsite and cook freshly caught fish. As they sit and drink champagne in the evening, Carlos offers to buy all of the letters Less has from those involved in the Russian River School. Less realizes Carlos’s plan: to take everything from him. Carlos reminisces about the day Less met Robert on the beach; Carlos tells Less that he never hated him but envied him instead. He believes that he is “the world’s leading expert on Arthur Less” (163). Less refuses Carlos’s offer to purchase the letters. Carlos ponders that Less’s entire life is a comedy (whereas most lives are half comedy, half tragedy). Carlos tells Less that he has won, that he has the best live of anyone he knows, and he does not even realize it. Less believes that this is nonsense. Carlos leaves, taking the boat back to shore. Less returns to the hotel and, in the morning, finds that Carlos has already left.

The boy from the airport sits in a church, bored. As his eyes wander outside, he sees the same American from the airport. The man is getting into a car. Their eyes meet for a moment, and the boy cannot comprehend the meaning that is passed between them. The car and the American depart.