3 posts tagged “america”

In a post-apocalyptic America, a man and his young son try to make the journey south, where they hope to find a life where they can do more than just survive.  At the moment, they are just about managing to stay alive in a barren world where houses and stores have been plundered and ruined, and every stranger they encounter is a very real threat.

This is an amazing book.  The relationship between the man and the boy - who remain unnamed throughout the novel - is totally believeable.  They are both all that the other has, and the man will do anything to protect his son, while the son puts all his faith and trust into his father.  The pair show the lengths that people will go to to survive, while still trying to hold onto their humanity; they also show the reserves of strength and thought that people find in such situations, where they are having to consider their every action and deed.

The bare landscape is also portrayed magnificently, and is frighteningly imaginable. The language is very clean, with no unnecessary words; the barren-ness of the prose reflects the barren-ness of the country.

I was drawn into this book from the very first pages, and didn't want to put it down.  I was anxious to get to the end to find out what would be the fate of these two characters, but when I finished it, I wished that there was still more to read.

A very thought provoking novel that will stay with me for a long time - highly recommended.

When Shelby Sloane is given a rare, bright yellow 1966 Mustang for her birthday, she decides to drive it from her home in New York, across to Mendocino, California, to find the mother who left when Shelby was just a child.  Her sometime friend Gina comes along for the ride, with her own motives.

Along the way, Shelby breaks their 'no hitchhiking' rule and picks up a hitchhiker in the shape of wild and carefree, pink haired Candy Cane.  What Shelby and Gina don't know is that Candy is running away from a life so desperate and dark that the two girls cannot begin to imagine it, until they realise that their own lives are in danger.

Along the way, the girls learn some lessons about life, love and themselves.

I enjoyed this offering from Paullina Simons - an author I have always enjoyed  The character of Candy was fascinating - not always likeable, but always interesting to read about.  Generally the story flew along at an exciting pace, although in the middle, I felt it 'sagged' slightly.  However, the first and final thirds of the book were excellent.

The book is told from Shelby's point of view, and this meant that at times, knowing what we as the reader do of Shelby's mind set, some of the decisions she made seemed implausible.  Her friend Gina, who was probably the most unsympathetic of the three main characters, was more believeable in that regard.

However, none of these slight criticisms detract from the fact that this book, on the whole, is a real page turner, with genuine tension for the reader, as the girls face fresh problems and fewer solutions, the further along their journey they go.

The first thing to mention is that Denis Leary is not a medical Doctor - the Doctor in his name is due to the fact that he has been granted an Honorary Degree.  I mention it because anyone familiar with Denis Leary might be shocked (as I was) to see him referred to as Doctor!

For anyone not familiar with Denis Leary, he is an outspoken, often controversial, Irish-American writer, comedian and actor.  He polarises audiences; generally people think he is extremely offensive, or extremely funny.  I fall into the latter category.

Leary is famous for his onstage rants, and this book is an extended such rant.  He discusses what in his opinion is wrong with America today (blaming lazy parenting,over medication, bad role models and the blame culture amongst other things), and says what he would do to put things right.  To be clear, this book is obviously meant to be comedy, although he does raise many serious points in it.

It's not an autobiography, although there is plenty here about Leary's childhood and his relationship with his parents, especially his mother, who is obviously close to.  He also talks about his marriage and children, and it is obvious that his family is the most important thing in the world to him - and he is frustrated that so many people don't put their family first (or even second or third).

The book made me laugh out loud on many occasions.  If you are easily offended by swearing, then I would advise you to approach with great caution (or just avoid altogether), but if you sometimes wonder at what on earth the world is coming to, and don't object to a fair amount of bluntness and curse words, and feel like you need a good belly laugh, then I would definitely recommend this book to you.