David Granger wakes up from brain surgery muttering a name - but not Hank (his son), Ella (his beloved granddaughter), or even Laura (his deceased wife). No, it's the name of an arch enemy from his Vietnam War days, and the time has come for him to make things right.
Hank doesn't understand David, but their living together during David's convalescence will be good for them all (if nobody dies). Soon Hank learns you have to go deeper than David's words to find out who he really is.
I adore everything Matthew Quick writes, and this is no exception. It's a tough book sometimes - David is a crabby old bastard - but like Hank we see there's much more going on that first glance suggests.
David's friends are a diverse and interesting bunch, and he loves them as if they were blood. They're a fun bunch to meet, and they keep the story moving as they aid and support David's quest. The book's title is a bit of a surprise: a story from Laura that's not fully explained until the very end.
Showing posts with label redemption. Show all posts
Showing posts with label redemption. Show all posts
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Wednesday, June 28, 2017
Lincoln in the Bardo by George Saunders
O!M!G! Listen to this audiobook! I'm just gonna put that right up there at the top of this post, because it's super important. I am serious. Listen to this audiobook.
This is a strange tale - an experimental novel - told mainly by the spirits that inhabit the Washington DC cemetery where Abraham Lincoln's son was temporarily interred upon his death in 1862. It takes place over a very short time period as the living and dead observe the boy's funeral cortege, the family's grief, and the father's late-night cemetery visit to grieve in private.
There are a lot of opinions, stories, and experiences involved in the novel's narrative, and they're each systematically logged and annotated for your reference. Which is where the audiobook's special nature comes in handy. The library bought an audiobook copy especially because I'd read an article about the 166 narrators they used to record it.
The book is incredible and completely engrossing. Even in some of the more strangely told parts of the story, it's fascinating how each voice brings its own perspective to the events: was the moon full, new, or a sliver that night? How to describe the strange angularity of a most famous man?
This is a strange tale - an experimental novel - told mainly by the spirits that inhabit the Washington DC cemetery where Abraham Lincoln's son was temporarily interred upon his death in 1862. It takes place over a very short time period as the living and dead observe the boy's funeral cortege, the family's grief, and the father's late-night cemetery visit to grieve in private.
There are a lot of opinions, stories, and experiences involved in the novel's narrative, and they're each systematically logged and annotated for your reference. Which is where the audiobook's special nature comes in handy. The library bought an audiobook copy especially because I'd read an article about the 166 narrators they used to record it.
The book is incredible and completely engrossing. Even in some of the more strangely told parts of the story, it's fascinating how each voice brings its own perspective to the events: was the moon full, new, or a sliver that night? How to describe the strange angularity of a most famous man?
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