Leanne Shapton's book, the full title of which I've written once and will not do so again, has a wonderful concept. It's a catalogue of lots for an auction held on Saturday the 14th of February, 2009 (there's a clue) at a New York auction house. Each of the items on sale, few of which would have any real value at auction, represents a different stage in the relationship between two people, 26 year-old cookery columnist Lenore Doolan and 39 year-old travelling photographer Harold Morris.
It begins with photographs and a party invitation and ends with collections of dried flowers. Make of that symbolism what you will. In between you'll find everything from mixtapes to diary pages, braziers to pyjamas, china dogs to salt shakers, books, ties, umbrellas, cocktail mixers, cake stands, menus, travel clocks and post-it notes... all meticulously documented with lot numbers, images, dimensions and reserve prices. It's the ephemera on which we build our lives, yet it tells an all too recognisable story of the rise and fall of a love affair, finding heartbreaking detail in the minutiae. There are times when that level of detail bogs us down - maybe not every one of these lots is entirely necessary - but after finishing this book I felt I knew these characters inside and out... though some details of their relationship are left to the reader's imagination / speculation.
