| | 
|
|
 |
|
Carry Me Across the Water
Ethan Canin. Random House: 2001 (hardback). ISBN: 0679456791. 224 pages.
Guide not available
|
| |
|
Capturing the nuances of human frailty
and strength that bind us to those we love, Ethan Canin writes most persuasively about family. Those of you who read Canin's phenomenal first book of short stories,
The Palace Thief, know that this young Jewish writer combines lyrical prose with a wisdom about human nature that
rivals even the most seasoned writers.In his newest novel, Canin records the life of one man, August Kleinman, a man
whose rather bleak personal motto has informed his life since his mother first told him to "take the advice of no one."
Kleinman escapes the Holocaust, travels to America, serves his new country as a soldier in WWII, starts a family, builds a
fortune, and enjoys worldly success--all before we meet him. The Kleinman we're introduced to is in the autumn of his life,
looking back on his choices and trying to build a relationship with his adult children and grandchild. Through Kleinman's
world-weary eyes, we experience everything from the paradox of the American Dream to the joy of being a grandparent, all
from a unique male perspective. Kleinman is haunted by an encounter with a young Japanese soldier during the war, and as we
move back and forth through Kleinman's memory toward that pivotal moment, we begin to understand the forces at work behind
his motto. Canin excels at moving us toward the climax without giving too much away and at moving us to tears without
becoming sentimental.
|
| |
| |
contact us
