A Visit from the Goon Squad by Jennifer Egan

Both Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures and the Gables Book Club are reading The Candy House so in the interest of continuity I picked up the earlier book that featured the same characters. Visit was probably the quirkiest book I have ever encountered. It won the Pulitzer Prize min 2010 and has received exclamations as the perfect book.  Many critics have written how it haunts them as they revisit the myriad of characters introduced in the novel. Actually, it reads more like a collection of interlinked short stories. It is hard to describe as the stories move back and forth in time (1970s to 2020), place (New York to California to Africa), and connection with each other. 

The reader is introduced to Bennie Salazar and Sasha in the first chapter and they weave their way in to succeeding chapters of the novel. Bennie is a member of a Punk band that gets a break from Lou, who is a record producer and eventually a tragic figure. Sasha is introduced as a kleptomaniac, stealing a wallet in a woman's restroom before she meets with her therapist. Both incidents give insight as to how their lives will change through the decades.

Throughout the novel various scenes give hints to tell the story of the lives of the characters. Bennie moves up through the recording scene and eventually has his own record label. He marries twice, obsessed over his impotency to the degree that he ingests gold flakes to help improve it. Sasha had a sad life that finds her running away with a rock star and traveling all over the world. One of the most stereotypical characters is LaDoll, a slutty publicist in New York City, who is also mother to Lulu. The novel, in chapter 12, projects into the future as it is a series of PowerPoint slides called "pointers" and is written by Sasha's daughter, Alison. 

At times this was a very frustrating read because of how the novel shifted time, place, and characters. It perhaps is worth a second read, but I am not sure I could do that. I found it hard to connect with many of the characters and was even repulsed by a few. I sure hope that The Candy House is a more satisfying read.

 

Before the Coffee Gets Cold by Toshikazu Kawaguchi

 This was the selection for our March book club gathering. It is the first in a series of books that takes place in a small cafe, Funiculi, Funicula in Tokyo. The book is really a series of vignettes from the action that takes place in the cafe. They could be classified as time travel in that when a person sits in a particular chair at the cafe, they can travel into the past and become a part of that past, without being able to change it. 

A ghost, a woman dressed in white, is the usual occupant of the seat. However, once a day she leaves the seat to use the restroom in the cafe. It is at that time a person can take that seat and travel back in time. The stipulation is that the person must finish his or her visit to the past Before the Coffee Gets Cold.  The central character i s Kazu, the barister with other characters entering and exiting the cafe and the novel. 

The first story opens with Fumiko and  Goro, her boyfriend, enjoying coffee in the cafe. Much to her surprise and dismay Goro has decided to move to America. She doesn't speak up and convey her feelings and for this she regrets that time. This causes her to return to the cafe after a week to try to travel back in time to see what would have happened if she had expressed her love to Goro. She realizes that it wouldn't change things, but it would spur him on to possibly return at some point to Japan.

The second story is that of Kohtake who is married to Fusagi, a man diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. The disease has progressed to the point where Fusagi doesn't remember her, but had intended to give her a letter 3 years previous. She decides to take the seat to travel back and read the letter that affects her deeply . 

In the third story Hira, who owns a bar near the cafe, who because of her personal decision to live her own life and not take over the operation of her parents' inn, desires to travel back to make amends with her sister, Kumi, who was killed in a car accident. Hira blames herself for the accident and makes a promise to Kumi that she does keep.

Finally, the fourth story, Kei, the wife of Nagare, who owns the cafe, is the sole person who desires to travel forward in time. Suffering from a medical condition that threatens her life and the baby she is carrying,  she wants to know what happens to both of them. She is able to meet her daughter, Miki, who is 15 years old. This story also offers a surprise for Fumiko from the first story. 

Once the premise of the book became clear, it was easier to understand. What made it tedious, however, were the Japanese names for the characters and how to keep them separate. It was actually quite sad to understand the regret of those characters for actions that they wished to change. Love and relationships often lead to actions and reactions of regret. The emotions that the novel evoked were what made the book seem less contrived and far-fetched.

 

 

 

Tenth of December by George Saunders

When it debuted on the New York Times best seller list at #3, it was remarked back in January of 2013 that this will be the best book that you will read all year. I am not sure that I can echo that praise, but Tenth of December  is a unique book and a thought-provoking read. The stories are diverse and will leave the reader at times scratching his or her head.

I am typically not a short story reader, but since Saunders was lecturing for the Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures Literary Evening program, I was compelled to revisit the genre. I had forgotten how satisfying it can be. The stories have a dark element to them -  "Victory Lap" is about a teenage abduction - but Saunders manages to avoid the depressing aftertaste by bringing a keen sense of humor to them. Each of the ten stories addresses a distinct aspect of the human condition and comes to a fulfilling ending. 

Short stories are hard to write. The author must compress his or her thoughts into a limited discourse. Each word has to have meaning beyond the word itself. It must convey a feeling, a thought, and an action. George Saunders has accomplished all of this in his collection. I will look forward to future works. He says that he works on multiple stories at one time. It may be a while before the next book is released. And so, until that time, when I want a short and challenging read, I will return to Tenth of December.

George Saunders autographing Tenth of December