 Norman Shrapnel , in his obituary of Powell , speculates whether the author ever regretted creating the " maddening , mysterious , apparently indestructible Widmerpool " and , like Ali , expresses disappointment with the manner of the character 's death . Conversely , in a biographical sketch of Powell , Michael Barber believes that Widmerpool 's demise accords with a principal theme of the novels , expressed in Casanova 's Chinese Restaurant ( fifth book in the sequence ) , that " in the end most things in life — perhaps all things — turn out to be appropriate " . Michael <unk> , reviewing Powell 's autobiography To Keep the Ball Rolling , presents the view that , while the novels are built around Widmerpool , they are not essentially about him : " He is an organising principle , a means , not an end , and serves primarily to establish a system of judgement . " 
