thillitt

An excellent story about a NYC neighborhood and the characters that inhabit it. The thing w/ this book is you don't feel like you're reading the author's story. Nick Kurlansky has succeeded in completely removing his voice from the pages, a feat I have rarely encountered in works of fiction and one that makes the book eminently enjoyable. Kurlansky has wonderful knack for characterizing each individual in this story w/ unique dialog and language - impressive considering it takes place in Lower Manhattan in the mid-80s among a mix of Latino, European and Suburban Yuppie immigrant groups who are all criss-crossing the social strata. Yet none of them come off hackneyed or condescending and coupled w/ his beautiful descriptions of a neighborhood at the height of it's decay (or on the doorstep of it's revitalization [gentrification], if you're a glass-half-full kind of person), you really can't help but feel like you're floating through your own memories. He's really that good.

2022-12-02 06:55