Take a photo of a barcode or cover
3.12 AVERAGE
3.12 AVERAGE
When The Arrest happened, all technology just stopped working, but it wasn't quite the end of the world for Journeyman. His life as a Hollywood screenwriter was over, but he was finding his place in a new world, working as a bicycle deliveryman and butcher's assistant in his sister's organic farming community in Maine. But his community could be in for some changes when his friend Todbaum, a once-powerful movie studio executive, shows up at the town border in a working nuclear-powered supercar, bringing with him colorful stories about his cross-country post-Arrest journey and all the espresso the town residents care to drink. It's a weird and fun setup that is mostly well-executed, although I found the story's climax a bit perplexing. Jonathan Lethem is one of my favorite writers, and while I probably wouldn't put this in the top half of his books, it is full of interesting ideas, funny thoughts, and clever turns of phrase. The rare book I kind of wish had been longer, but I enjoyed what it was.
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book is strange and interestingly absurd. There were times when the writing sucked me in and I found the story compelling. However, I don’t think this book succeeded in transmitting even a vaguely cohesive argument/analysis/ social commentary, even though that’s what it seemed to want to do. Maybe it didn’t want to do so, and seeming to want to do so was meant to be part of the charm. I dunno.
Either way, I’m not mad that I read this book but I’m also not going to recommend it to anyone I know. I enjoyed the post-apocalyptic world building but the plot wasn’t strong enough and the characters flat, especially in the final third of the book. This is kind of something you could read on holiday if you want to something strange yet inconclusive; a fluff read without actually being fluffy.
Either way, I’m not mad that I read this book but I’m also not going to recommend it to anyone I know. I enjoyed the post-apocalyptic world building but the plot wasn’t strong enough and the characters flat, especially in the final third of the book. This is kind of something you could read on holiday if you want to something strange yet inconclusive; a fluff read without actually being fluffy.
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
dark
emotional
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I love Lethem's style. This book is about fear, relationships, family dynamics, not knowing who you are or what you should do with your life, how the circumstances of life determine what your choices are, how your personality determines what your choices are, the role of technology in our lives, the power of storytelling to impact our view of the world.... etc., etc.
What it isn't about: understanding exactly what the Arrest was or why it is allowing some types of technology and not others. Clearly not the point. He's set up a world and the reader has to enter in, and live there. Which you can do if you get the idea of "willing suspension of disbelief," a phrase I learned in high school English class (thank you, Mrs. Pfaff!)
I fear young readers today are not equipped to "get" anything that isn't fully explained. If you want realism, don't read Lethem's speculative fiction.
As for the while male author perspective - I didn't find it at all problematic here. The main character, Sandy/Journeyman, is complex and sort of pathetic, but also I was rooting for him. His sister, Maddy, is a mysterious powerhouse throughout the novel.
What it isn't about: understanding exactly what the Arrest was or why it is allowing some types of technology and not others. Clearly not the point. He's set up a world and the reader has to enter in, and live there. Which you can do if you get the idea of "willing suspension of disbelief," a phrase I learned in high school English class (thank you, Mrs. Pfaff!)
I fear young readers today are not equipped to "get" anything that isn't fully explained. If you want realism, don't read Lethem's speculative fiction.
As for the while male author perspective - I didn't find it at all problematic here. The main character, Sandy/Journeyman, is complex and sort of pathetic, but also I was rooting for him. His sister, Maddy, is a mysterious powerhouse throughout the novel.
challenging
dark
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
No idea the point of this story. No one in the story felt convincing nor was any of it very funny.
Thanks to HarperCollins and NetGalley for an ARC of this title.
Authors in 2020 seem to have the idea of "An Event" happening in the United States, and what might happen after that, on the brain this year. We've already had [b:A Children's Bible|53122391|A Children's Bible|Lydia Millet|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1572903380l/53122391._SX50_SY75_.jpg|73351391], [b:The Silence|53879204|The Silence|Don DeLillo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1595611017l/53879204._SY75_.jpg|84216171], and [b:Leave the World Behind|50358031|Leave the World Behind|Rumaan Alam|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1583735183l/50358031._SY75_.jpg|75306723] give their take on what that event was and what happens in the direct aftermath, and now The Arrest shows what might happen with a little more remove.
The cover description on the book specifically calls out that it's not meant to be interpreted post-apocalyptically. This isn't the end of the world, but something's definitely happened to the devices. I think Lethem's description of what "The Arrest" is is one of the most poetic passages I've read this year, and satisfied me more than Don DeLillo or Rumaan Alam's descriptions of the inciting incidents. It took me a little bit to get use to the way Jonathan Lethem writes to figure out what was going on and if I liked this - chapters are fairly short, but can be dense if you're not fully paying attention to what characters are doing, since the main character is alternately Journeyman, Sandy, or Alexander Duplessis. The book gives glimpses of who its characters were in the beforetimes and how the "arrest" has changed their world well. I'm not sure I entirely "got" the ending, but this was a nice little diversion into a speculative future.
Authors in 2020 seem to have the idea of "An Event" happening in the United States, and what might happen after that, on the brain this year. We've already had [b:A Children's Bible|53122391|A Children's Bible|Lydia Millet|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1572903380l/53122391._SX50_SY75_.jpg|73351391], [b:The Silence|53879204|The Silence|Don DeLillo|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1595611017l/53879204._SY75_.jpg|84216171], and [b:Leave the World Behind|50358031|Leave the World Behind|Rumaan Alam|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1583735183l/50358031._SY75_.jpg|75306723] give their take on what that event was and what happens in the direct aftermath, and now The Arrest shows what might happen with a little more remove.
The cover description on the book specifically calls out that it's not meant to be interpreted post-apocalyptically. This isn't the end of the world, but something's definitely happened to the devices. I think Lethem's description of what "The Arrest" is is one of the most poetic passages I've read this year, and satisfied me more than Don DeLillo or Rumaan Alam's descriptions of the inciting incidents. It took me a little bit to get use to the way Jonathan Lethem writes to figure out what was going on and if I liked this - chapters are fairly short, but can be dense if you're not fully paying attention to what characters are doing, since the main character is alternately Journeyman, Sandy, or Alexander Duplessis. The book gives glimpses of who its characters were in the beforetimes and how the "arrest" has changed their world well. I'm not sure I entirely "got" the ending, but this was a nice little diversion into a speculative future.