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I’m advising readers to read, re-read, and study the ending of this book because it is, in my estimation, pure literary genius. Not an easy job, conveying a dying man’s myriad thoughts and interactions throughout a whole novel in a manner that keeps the reader turning pages, but the author does it with a cerebral, yet tongue-in-cheek style that smacks a little of J.D. Salinger. Yep, it’s that good.
Josh Turner is dying, a painful and slow cancerous death. His mind whirls with amazing insights and he examines his fears and philosophies even as he’s forced into a retreat of Coltrane tapes and morphine. The author tells us this about Josh’s pain, quote: “The beast has come out to play and it’s brought a chainsaw.” Well said, huh? And Josh’s companion on this Jack Kerouac-style journey of the mind toward resolution is a cosmic apparition, a stubborn extra-terrestrial named Max. Between nostalgic, surreal excursions with Max, Josh deals with a continual stream of nurses and visitors to his hospital bed, including a fascinating run-in with a determined evangelist. And there are Josh’s well-meaning friends, colorful characters who have him illegally pigging out on fast food and even sort have him of playing cupid—all done with snappy, engaging dialogue. When you pick up this book, be prepared to be engaged with humor, sarcasm, joy, fear, regret, great chunks of delicious nostalgia, and a wide spectrum of emotions all bracketed by quantum physics, visions of reincarnation, and even thoughts about the Kevorkian solution. Make no mistake: this is a hugely entertaining book, even as it is quite profound.
The author bio tells us that David Treciak is an award-winning writer with a number of stories and screenplays to his credit. He now lives in L.A. but originally hails from Detroit. They say he’s an avid student of life. Yeah, well, that’s self-evident in his writing. They say he tells tales that’ll make us laugh, cry, and scratch our heads in wonder as the profundity of what he has written sinks in. True enough, and like Treciak’s compelling literary style—well said. Highly Recommended by reviewer: Jan Evan Whitford, Allbooks Reviews
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