5/12/2023 0 Comments The vixen novelOr, in Ethel’s case, for typing them up for her brother. Prose deftly reminds us of a chapter from nearly 70 years ago, during the Red Menace hysteria, when the government could jail and kill a couple for passing on secrets to the Soviets. This novel also comes at a perfect time in American history, as hard-won voting rights are being suppressed and the fabric of democracy itself torn apart. Francine Prose’s higher purpose as a novelist is fully realized in this delicious coming-of-age story in which everyone is afraid, anyone can be accused, and disinformation runs rampant. the underlying heartbeat of The Vixen isn’t political so much as literary-a book within a book that keeps the narrative thrumming. From the beginning, Prose places us firmly in the consciousness of an insecure young Jewish man named Simon who has just graduated from Harvard and who, for mysterious reasons, has been rejected by the only graduate school he applied to. This is one of the most satisfying novels I’ve read in ages. And yet, this is also a book steeped in the warmth of Jewish family life, post–World War II. Written by Francine Prose Review by Trish MacEnulty. It is a testament to Prose’s mastery as a storyteller that what emerges is a penetrating look at the underside of comedy-namely, how the human condition can be so predictably cruel and paranoid. The most surprising thing about The Vixen.is how laugh-aloud funny it is.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |