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A review by sonia_reppe
The Astonishing Life of August March by Aaron Jackson
5.0
(Why named so similarly to Saul Bellow's Adventures of Augie March? It made me think this might be a retelling or an homage to that work, but no; the only similarity being the main character was male and the timeline spanned his childhood to adulthood).
In NYC, a baby is abandoned in a theater and loosely raised by the theater's elderly laundress, (she goes home at night and he sleeps at the theater). As a boy, he never leaves the theater, and is mentored by a Shakespearean actor. In reality, he's an orphan, and his life becomes hardship after the real estate owner determines the fate of the theater building.
August faces sadness and loneliness, but there's levity, and the narration zips along. This is a fun, oddball gem.
The theater setting and the amusing romp element reminded me a little of City of Girls. The misadventures-of-a-boy element reminds me of Last Bus to Wisdom. One of my favorites of 2020.
In NYC, a baby is abandoned in a theater and loosely raised by the theater's elderly laundress, (she goes home at night and he sleeps at the theater). As a boy, he never leaves the theater, and is mentored by a Shakespearean actor. In reality, he's an orphan, and his life becomes hardship after the real estate owner determines the fate of the theater building.
August faces sadness and loneliness, but there's levity, and the narration zips along. This is a fun, oddball gem.
The theater setting and the amusing romp element reminded me a little of City of Girls. The misadventures-of-a-boy element reminds me of Last Bus to Wisdom. One of my favorites of 2020.