Weekend Reading

Over the weekend I finished reading Julia Glass’s sophomore outing, The Whole World Over. Split between the arid desert of New Mexico and the urban sprawl of New York City, Glass creates two worlds inhabited by a loosely connected cast of characters who struggle to find their way through turbulent relationships, careers upheavals, and loss of many kinds. Most arresting and touching for me, was Saga; having lost much of her short term memory from a freak accident, she has intriguing and unique perspectives on events both large and small, which offers a fresh look at such well-traversed themes (the search for love, the challenges of marriage and child rearing, etc.).

Subtle clues throughout the book, published in 2006, tell us that the story actually takes place several years earlier (a gay New Yorker wishes he could take his stuffy visiting brother to Hedwig and the Angry Inch instead of the uber-popular The Producers, for instance). And, though not hailed as a “9/11” story, it comes as no surprise when that days events act as a catalyst for change and resolution among many of the characters. I wasn’t sure how I’d react to this element of the novel, since I’ve mostly avoided 9/11 movies and books. In part, I feel like many of them are manipulative (Oliver Stone’s World Trade Center, especially), but I suppose I also subscribe to the “books/movies should be escapist” mentality, at least on this topic. Luckily, Glass’s take on the attacks felt both appropriate and genuine. She never tries to put us on the planes or in the towers; instead, she has her characters’ experiences mirror what most of us in NYC felt—shock, confusion, and worry about those we love. Her deft handling of both her characters and her plot devices should be applauded.