Contacts - Mark Watson

"He was still on track. You couldn't stop a train. It would get where it was going"

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The concept of this book I found very interesting from the offset, but I approached reading it tentatively because of the delicate nature of it's subject matter. Male mental health and suicide are hugely important topics and I applaud Mark Watson for broaching the subject with candour and wit.

James Chiltern is desperately unhappy, and adamant that he cannot go on any longer. Set on his plan, he boards the London to Edinburgh overnight train, sends a text to the 158 people in his contacts then sets his phone onto flight mode. Immediately all over the world family, friends, and ghosts from his past receive his message, that he will end his life in the morning. As each hour passes in James' journey towards his destination, his faith in his decision is strengthened, while his contacts are left to reflect on the roles they played in his misery.

To me Contacts is a book with a lot of meanings; first and foremost it is a book about mental health and specifically male mental health, so I like that it is from the perspective of a group that need to be heard, need to be listened to. Watson has crushingly relayed a scenario in which the stigma of men talking about their mental health, crying and burying their emotions has devastating consequences. In that sense I think this is a great resource in the vital conversation we need to be having surrounding male mental health.

Secondly, it is a book about personal reflection; reflection on the part we play in other people's lives, the impact we have, the power we wield without even knowing. Throughout the novel, Watson switches between the perspectives of James himself, rationalizing his decision to end his life, and the people across the globe who have unwittingly led him down this path. They are forced to consider the consequences of their actions and grow as people.

Lastly it is a book about the power of technology. Watson wanted to write something that subverts the prominent idea that technology is a villain, responsible for trivializing our relationships and reducing them to 'screen exchanges'. Contacts highlights the potential that technology has to unite instead of divide; the power that we have in our pockets to improve our connections and other people's lives across the world.

Mark Watson's novel is both funny and heart-breaking but don't be lulled into a false sense of security, it is not an easy read. It is uncomfortable and nerve-wracking, and makes that big knot in your back ache from tension. 2020 has taught us how important our family relationships and friendships are, and Contacts reiterates that message loud and clear.

H x