The Society of Others (AD) / by William Nicholson; read by Glen McReady

In England, an unnamed young man no longer sees the point of anything. Everything is worthless, "all a wash" he muses from his room where he no longer leaves his bed. His mother and father care enough to at least take an interest in their son's issues, supplying him with the necessary funds to get by and leaving him alone for the most part. They do give advice though, not ill-natured but generally unsolicited enought until it finally does become too irritating. In a spur of the moment decision, the choice to get away is immediatley undertaken in unplanned and unpremeditated fashion.

Aimlessly hitchhiking along the road until he's picked up by a trucker heading for the channel tunnel, the protagonist sets off on his journey not knowing (or caring) about his destination. The adventure gets along fine for a little while. But when the truck driver, an odd fellow who peddles his own brand of muddled philosophy to the protagonist, is pulled over in a former eastern bloc country, things suddenly get very strange. The truck is captured and set ablaze by armed guerilla-styled men who capture the protagonist and his driver, confiscate their belongings and actually accuse the protagonist of committing murder. But that's only the beginning as the plot deepens into an ever-widening story of faith, allegiance, conspiracy and complicit dealings.

Author William Nicholson, also the Oscar-winning screenwriter of the blockbuster movie Gladiator, brilliantly pulls off this interesting novel focusing on free will, individual choices and the lives we make for ourselves. With gentle humor, wonderfully wry aplomb and lucid candor, The Society of Others is a bit of an off-the-wall book, very Kafka-esque in its own way positioning individual reason against institutional irrationality and repressive politics. Cynical ramblings by the anonymous protagonist add surprising weight to the novel's dreamlike atmosphere and detached mood, altogether offering up an entertaining story on the importance of human connection and worthwhile relationships. Of course the oral narrative of this, the audiobook, is enhanced by reader Glen McCready who more than manages the narrator's dour, nihilistic complex and lends admirable credibility to the supporting characters. This book is definitely better than OK and firmly satisfactory right up until the end. (AD FIC NICHOLSO)

Paris, Texas (1984) DVD / a film by Wim Wenders; starring Harry Dean Stanton, Dean Rockwell, Nastassjia Kinski, Auroré Clement & Hunter Carson

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Somewhere in the American Southwest, a man walks alone across the parched desert not knowing where he's from, where he's going or even his own name. Dissheveled and weatherbeaten, he continues on, trance-like in one direction across the sun-baked terrain finally stopping at an isolated outpost where, in a small general store, he passes out. Upon waking, the attending doctor can get neither word nor reaction from his severely malnourished but docile patient and, finding only a worn piece of paper with some contact info, calls the number which turns out to be the brother of the mute, who's finally identified as Travis Henderson.
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Brother Walt Henderson arrives to meet Travis whom he hasn't seen for four years and, following an awkward period of greeting and reaquaintance with Walt basically having to talk Travis out of his suspended catatonic state, the pair travel back to Walt's Southern California home. Awaiting them are Walt's wife Anne and 7-year-old Hunter, Travis' biological son who's lived with his aunt and uncle ever since the dissolution of Travis' marriage, his mysterious disappearance and subsequent four-year stint spent wandering alone. Though wary and tentative of his father initially, young Hunter quickly warms to Travis who swiftly regains his bearings with the help of some old home movies and photo albums. After learning of the whereabouts of his (Travis') former wife Jane--also Hunter's mother, also estranged of late--the newly reunited father and son pair embark on a their own journey, one intended to reconnect with the third member of their formerly dissolved family unit living somewhere in Houston.
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Paris, Texas isn't actually about the real-life town in the northeast corner of the state. Yet the title's paradoxical ring is well-understood through the movie's context. It's a film which is acutely conscious of reality, exploring emotions and relationships, families and obligations; observing the price of passion, the burden of existence and the saving grace of love through motifs of travel, architecture and geography. As much can be said about the movie apart from the spot-on acting, which is impeccable really in its simplistic approach. The visual scenes are rich in symbolic imagery and American iconography as perceived by an outsider; it's a French/German co-production headed by German director Wim Wenders (Wings of Desire) who does some of his best work here. Images show characters surrounded by vast, impersonal forms of modern skyscrapers and looming natural landforms, the cities perceivably as empty and dispassionate as the desert. Wenders' use of over 25 individual filming locations is one truly remarkable, if unorthodox, feat. All scenes were shot chronologically beginning in Texas' Big Bend country, running through Arizona and New Mexico and finally to the San Fernando Valley before returning to Houston for the final act. The effort and expense was, of course, well worth it: Paris, Texas won the Palme d'Or prize awarded at Cannes that year and is a timeless example of the power of independent cinema. (DVD PARIS)

The English Major / by Jim Harrison

"It used to be Cliff and Vivian and now it isn't" (p. 2)

At 60, Cliff is having a post mid-life crisis of sorts. A retired school teacher and part-time farmer in rural Michigan, he's currently having a devil of a time coming to grips with his wife leaving him, the seemingly inevitable foreclosure on his farm, and, perhaps most devastating, the recent death of his beloved dog Lola. So what better time to embark on the great American road trip? Figuring that he can reconnect with his Kerouac-ian soul and perhaps tie up some loose ends with his wife in Arizona, son in California and a former student he's always been drawn to, Cliff heads 'wagons west' (his car is a Ford Taurus station wagon) anticipating some exciting new horizons. What begins as a soul-searching quest for closure quickly becomes a joyride to sow up some wild oats which may have been bypassed in his youth. Cliff's liason with his married former student, Marybelle, is far more lurid than what Cliff (and the reader) could have imagined, the pair getting to know each other so well that Cliff's attraction becomes aversion by the time he drops her off in Montana. And any embittered--though spitefully gratifying--notions of Vivian's coming back to him are confirmed by her high-minded attempts to reconcile things; even though Cliff knows she's only angling to get some money out of his soon-to-be sold-off farm. Still, there's lessons learned along the way. One being that the best things in life may well be free, but they aren't always so great all the time.

This book is largely an embodiment of the "be careful what you wish for . . ." notion, entertaining the reader with quirky characters, instances of assumptions gone haywire, and nostalgia turned on its head, not to mention lots of intimately sordid details. While protagonist/narrator Cliff is refreshingly down-to-earth, he's also somewhat of a dirty old man. Which is why some readers may not be so appreciative of Cliff's detailed rendering of he and Marybelle's exploits and the flirtatious ways in which he entertains his thoughts about other loose female acquaintances (i.e., every waitress, barmaid, hotel clerk, etc.). There's fun to be had though, following Cliff as he geographically connects the dots and patchworks the various facets of his life, always ready to bear his lot even if he's not so keen on what it gives him. (FIC HARRISON)

The Flying Troutmans / Miriam Toews

Ever wished you could just run away from it all? Hattie Troutman does, but unfortunately, it all -- in particular, her family -- just seems to keep following her. Hattie's living in Paris and is recently homeless, recently boyfriend-less, and just a bit directionless when she receives a call from her 11-year old niece that she's urgently needed back home in Canada. She arrives to find her older sister deep in the throes of a serious depressive episode and her niece and nephew trying valiantly to fend for themselves and their sick mom.

Although I know that librarians are supposed to be immune to this, I was totally attracted to this book because of the cover. I don't know if the kid on the front is supposed to be Hattie's niece, Thebes, who has a mild obsession with art projects (especially creating giant checks out of posterboard to give to people she thinks need a little boost to their day) or if it's supposed to be a representation of Hattie herself -- who, although in her late 20's, is just a bit immature for her age and feels moderately to totally overwhelmed by the responsibility of suddenly being the primary caretaker of her sister's family. Regardless, the kid covering her eyes in the funny hat is a perfect representation of the mood of this book. A little wacky, a little serious.

At its heart, this book is a road trip book with literary underpinnings that are pretty well disguised by the book's quick pacing. After putting her sister in the hospital, Hattie and the kids embark on an epic journey in a marginally operational minivan across the United States to search for the kids' elusive artist father. They have some adventures and meet some nutty characters. More often than not, they ARE the nutty characters.

Hattie's niece and nephew are such appealing characters, by turns vulnerable and funny, wise and silly, that you can't help but be drawn into their voyage. Hattie has a complex relationship with her sister that the author gives us little glimpses of through flashbacks throughout the storyline. Hattie herself is tired of cleaning up her sister's messes, but she loves her family despite their flaws. She has to make an uncomfortable decision: what is she willing to give up for the ones she loves?

This book is has a wacky sense of humor and a streak of irony. While some of the characters are kind of out there in the zaniness realm, it does deal in a sensitive way with the effects of having a person with mental illness in the family and the unpalatable choices that family members are forced to make.