Review: "Billy Lynn's Long Halftime Walk" by Ben Fountain

Of the two novels that deal with the War in Iraq that were nominated for the National Book Award last year, Ben Fountain’s Billy Lynn’s Long Halftime Walk is clearly the inferior book. Or, to use a less negative term, it simply is not as good as Kevin Powers’ The Yellow Birds. While that novel deals with the gritty aspects of war without sentimentality or whimsy, Fountain’s novel focuses more on the absurd notions of this modern war and whether humor or hope is a possible product of its existence. But some people prefer that, so it really is just a matter of taste and what you prefer in what you read. Some respond well to humor, even when it’s placed within a dark situation, others like stark realism and bar-boned truths about life and living. But with that being said, there are some things this novel did that it really did not do well. We spend the entirety of the book inside the mind of Billy, an 18 year old army private, who, after he is a key player in the Bravo Squad’s heroic battle against Iraqi insurgents, becomes a national celebrity who, along with the rest of Bravo, go on a nation wide tour, ending with an appearance during a halftime show (headlined by Destiny’s Child) during the Thanksgiving Day game between the Cowboys and the Steelers at the now demolished Texas Stadium. Throughout the day he will fall in love with a beautiful cheerleader, learn the harsh details of the movie deal they have been negotiating, as well as some harsher truths about what lies ahead of him once his company is redeployed. The one thing this book has a lot of is charm, as well as a few key scenes involving their film agent Albert and the nefarious owner of the Cowboys, Norm. But these pieces fit together sloppily, leaving me questioning whether they had any point beyond just being there. And I felt the ending was a little too harsh and ambiguous, which contrasts to the somewhat lighthearted nature of the book. I should also mention the dialogue is painfully phony, and you can tell it was written by someone older who doesn’t relate to young people (judging from the author photo, Fountain seems to be in his 50’s). But, I found most of what I read a pleasurable experience. Even if you don’t love it, it is an easy book to like.

Rating: 4/5

Review: "Clockers" by Richard Price

Clockers is the Richard Price novel that truly lives up to the reputation that he has garnered for himself, especially to those who find their way to his novels through his work on The Wire. All the talent and good qualities that have been used to describe him, from his entertaining dialogue, classic sense of storytelling and place and a real love for fictional characters he crafts exist, to their full capacity, in this novel. While I liked Freedomland quite a bit, I felt the story seemed too big and far-reaching for someone with the talents Price possesses. He seemed to sacrifice nuance and intimacy for commentary on current events and a cast of characters he didn’t quite have a grasp of. But here, that is not the case. Price tells a story that is almost to intimate that it literally crawls under your skin and tries to peck itself out. It keeps its main focus on the lives and details (warts and all) of two men who are on opposite sides of the law. Each has their own flaws and each will, at some point in the story have our sympathy as they try to navigate this world of the fictional town of Dempsey, New Jersey, which seems on the verge of swallowing itself whole. Throughout this journey these two men make, Price, who is a master storyteller, guides us through this living hell, as everyone, even the criminals and demons try to obtain what makes them happy. In alternating chapters we meet Strike, a low-level drug dealer, whose boss, Rodney, begins to make deals that are destructive, dangerous, and way over his head. On the other side, we meet Detective Rocco, whose eyeing retirement with a young wife and an infant daughter in tow with greater urgency as his job becomes more soul killing. These two have almost nothing in common in their personalities, which I give Price a lot of kudos for. He inhabits these two very different people with skill and artistry. The only thing that brings them together is the murder of another low-level dealer named Darryl Adams. Strike’s older brother, Victor, confesses to the murder, but Rocco seeing this case as a good way to close out his career as a cop, sees through his flimsy confession and thinks he is covering for his brother, who he thinks committed the murder. With that setup, Price tells a very enthralling story for the next 600 pages, recounting in detail Strike’s progressively worsening stress related health issues, which he nurses with Vanilla Yoo-Hoo since he doesn’t drink, and Rocco’s relationship with a famous actor who is shadowing him for a future role he is researching, which ends abrupt way that is sad in who quickly it ends. All the tension, murder and mayhem leads to an ending which is kind of expected, but still packs a punch with how deep it goes into the psyche of modern humanity. The dialogue comes off a bit fake, but damn is it good. All the good things said about Price have come true for me through this great, intense and passionate novel.

Rating: 5/5

Review: "A Suitable Boy" by Vikram Seth

A book that is 1474 pages is everything that you think that it is; it is sometimes a chore to read, takes up a lot of your time, and by the end you question whether you can read another book afterwards, or if there is such a thing as reading, since what you have been doing for the past two weeks has become second nature. But a few, unexpected things that Vikram Seth’s colossal novel A Suitable Boy brings to mind are nuance and intricacy. This is not a long novel in the way of The Stand or War and Peace, in that there is not a lot of real action, and scenes do not go on longer than they need to be. Despite it’s length, which is a selling point of the novel, Seth keeps things very restrained and doesn’t add anything unnecessary, and although a big portion of this novel is quite boring, you become invested in the story pretty quickly, and over the long page count, the characters do become alive. It is a simple story, with its core being Mrs. Rupa Mehra’s search for a suitable mate for her daughter Lata. From that thread, Seth weaves a tale of the trials and tribulations of four extended families dealing with India’s newfound independence over a year in the early 1950’s. The book has many memorable scenes, such as a lion hunt, a bloody riot, two grand weddings that bookend, and enough tension about who Lata is going to marry that, towards the end makes you wish there were at least 100 more pages to go through (because I thought she didn’t choose right). The one area I have issue with is how much time is spent on Indian land reform. It is too complicated, especially with all the minor characters involved, and it just made me more interested in skipping ahead to see what Lata, Maan, or Haresh might be doing. But with a book this long, you have to let some stuff slide. I won’t let too much of the plot slip out, because it’s effects work better as a surprise. This is a really rich, enjoyable book that rewards the reader for sticking with it, despite its arguably obscene page count.

Rating: 4/5

Review: "Dusklands" by J. M. Coetzee

There is a scene early in Dusklands, J. M. Coetzee’s first and, next to The Master of Petersburg, his weakest novel, where a sex scene is described in such a detached and clinical way, that you might as well be reading a medical textbook in a Human Sexuality class. It is actually pretty funny, and if you read it out loud, it would probably be even funnier. But it is indicative of the problems with this first, rather short novel, which are really two spate novellas. It is as overwritten and tedious as Conrad’s Heart of Darkness, making a sparse 125 book seem like it is three or four times that long. What kept me going, not including the length, was the moments Coetzee emerges within this novel, showing the talent that would make him a very deserving recipient of the Nobel Prize in 2003. The first section takes place in 1970, where a man is researching the effects of psychological warfare on the Vietcong. Of course, he becomes strangely affected by his research and starts showing signs of aggression toward his family, culminating in a horrific set of circumstances involving his young son. This would have been shocking if the prose wasn’t so dry. It takes a lot of the emotional impact out of what is happening to this man, especially in the last few pages, which should have a monumental effect on the reader. Luckily, the second section is a little better, although the problems still arise. A man exploring the South African wilderness becomes sick and is nursed back to health by a bushman village, but when he is cast out, he seeks radically cruel vengeance on those he feels wronged by. Still overwritten, but the ending seen of violence and torture will most likely stick with you. Overall, a book you can skip unless you really like Coetzee, since it is dwarfed by his later, more accessible, and, simply put, better novels.

Rating: 3/5

Review: "The Old Gringo" by Carlos Fuentes

The Old Gringo by Carlos Fuentes is a cool little novel for anyone interested in this recently deceased giant of Latin American literature. It has a cool premise dealing with a literary mystery that has captivated audiences and the American psyche for a century, and the writing is top notch, so much so that I am surprised Fuentes did not win the Nobel during his lifetime. This book still has a few issues though. The way it sets up its timeline is very confusing, leaving little direction or clues as to when events are taking place, and whether they are out of order or actually in order and it is just being vague about it. Some may like it enough to go with the flow, but when dealing with separate time lines and things of that nature, I would like a little direction, especially with a premise that I am all but eager to give myself over to completely. The novel focuses on the journey of the unnamed “old gringo” of the title, who is modeled after the writer Ambrose Bierce, who disappeared without a trace as to what happened to him. In this fictional account he does actually join the Mexican Revolution and join the ranks of Pancho Villa’s army, lead by General Arroyo, a cocky man who has a thirst for blood. With the General, the gringo overtake a homestead, forcing everyone out except the school teacher, Harriet Winslow (really her name, don’t laugh), who begins a relationship with these two different men, with tragic results. Like I said before, the writing here is really good, getting to the heart of the story’s hidden meanings about death’s inevitability and the ways good intentions can be squandered by jealousy. I just wish that it was a little more clear at points, with the appearance of the actual Pancho Villa being the books narrative highlight, when I wanted much more. Still, this is a book you should check out. It’s relatively short and filled with many rich paragraphs.

Rating: 4/5

Review: "Sweet Tooth" by Ian McEwan

I feel, with what I have read of Ian McEwan, that he is a writer I simply read out of a mysterious compulsion, much like I do Chabon or Lethem. Any new book that comes out I feel the need to check out, and most of the book I have read of his are either very boring or very tedious, but most of the time both. Really, with the exception of his novels Enduring Love (my favorite) and Atonement, I have not really liked them very much. They each have a charm, with even his lesser books like The Child in Time and Black Dogs being worthy enough to finish. And, in retrospect, his earlier novels The Cement Garden and The Comfort of Strangers, each of which are very dark in comparison to his more modern works, seem a lot cooler than they were when I first read them. But his latest novel Sweet Tooth is one of his weakest books. I’d compared it to The Innocent, which also had a boring plot about British spies. The main character is Serena Frome, a book-smart girl who, after an affair with a professor, is brought in to a spy ring to keep track of a young writer, named Tom Hanley, whom she likes at first for his works, then falls in love with the man, with far-reaching consequences for her risky job. The little joy that this book provides comes from the long explanations of Tom’s stories that recall McEwan’s earlier days, like the one about a man who falls in love with a store mannequin or the husband whose life and marriage are falling apart, and the revelation of its cause and aftermath. It really makes you want to be reading those books instead of this one. While I am not a spy novel kind of guy, I know enough to tell that this is not a good one. Especially from someone who I still feel is very gifted.

Rating: 3/5