The Long Cloud by Hector MacKenzie review – there’s only so much depth to a himbo

This wry debut about a male model’s inner life, written in lowercase fragments, has tender insights but isn’t as profound as it aims to be

Should you care about a vape-loving, philandering male model who just goes with the flow because that’s life? Yes, says The Long Cloud, the wry debut novel of New Zealand artist and photographer Hector MacKenzie. Is it convincing? Well, sort of.

Xander, a 30-year-old former jock ageing out of the modelling industry and into an existential crisis, is a tabula rasa of sorts – a way for readers to glimpse reflections of themselves. And in an age dominated by how we’re perceived, what exactly is that “self”, anyway?

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