In Leon’s life, or rather his account of his life, no one was mean-spirited, no one schemed or lied or betrayed. Everyone was celebrated at least in some degree, as though it was a cause for wonder that anyone existed at all. He remembered all his friends’ best lines. The effect of one of Leon’s anecdotes was to make his listener warm to humankind and its failings. Everyone was, at minimal estimate, ‘a good egg’ or ‘a decent sort’, and motivation was never judged to be at variance with outer show. If there was mystery or contradiction in a friend, Leon took the long view and found a benign explanation… his blandness was perfectly tolerable, even soothing.
(107-108)
