A short history
Perhaps the realization that I had to move to a small town came when I was re-reading, for the eighth or tenth time, T.R. Pearson's 1985 novel "A Short History of a Small Place." Finally I realized that rather than sitting in an urban apartment pining for such experiences, I should go out and seek them myself.
Pearson recently published a "sequel" to that novel, titled "Glad News of the Natural World," and reading it is a bit like going to a high-school reunion. It's great fun to remember why you liked some of these people, but truly puzzling to wonder at how some of them turned out.
I'm only halfway through, but at this point Louis Benfield, jr., has moved to New York City, where he would be an aspiring actor if he wasn't so lazy. Both the laziness and the theater interest are surprises to me. Even more troubling for the nostalgic-minded is what has happened to his hometown of Neely, NC: it's now distinctly suburban, in the way that makes its residents both more comfortable and less eccentric (good for individuals, bad for storytellers).
One of the greatest joys of the original book was its tone: the most forgiving cynicism ever. The young Benfield, often summarizing the views of his father, would mince few words in describing people with remarkably unfortunate character flaws, but did so with such patience, kindness, and warmth that you just wanted to be friends with them. In the blurb that first attracted me to the book (one that's reprinted for the sequel), the New York Times wrote, "If there is some benign God watching over us, we want Him to look upon us with the wisdom and compassion with which Mr. Pearson views his world."
As in his other recent novels, Pearson's characters are now older and wiser. Their cynicism struggles with their goodness. The satire is still there, and no small amount of heart. But as for that overwhelmingly compassionate view of others' eccentricities (I suppose some might call it naivete)... I'm glad the first book inspired me to seek it myself.
I'm always interested in feedback, via info at johnclaytonbooks.d.c
Pearson recently published a "sequel" to that novel, titled "Glad News of the Natural World," and reading it is a bit like going to a high-school reunion. It's great fun to remember why you liked some of these people, but truly puzzling to wonder at how some of them turned out.
I'm only halfway through, but at this point Louis Benfield, jr., has moved to New York City, where he would be an aspiring actor if he wasn't so lazy. Both the laziness and the theater interest are surprises to me. Even more troubling for the nostalgic-minded is what has happened to his hometown of Neely, NC: it's now distinctly suburban, in the way that makes its residents both more comfortable and less eccentric (good for individuals, bad for storytellers).
One of the greatest joys of the original book was its tone: the most forgiving cynicism ever. The young Benfield, often summarizing the views of his father, would mince few words in describing people with remarkably unfortunate character flaws, but did so with such patience, kindness, and warmth that you just wanted to be friends with them. In the blurb that first attracted me to the book (one that's reprinted for the sequel), the New York Times wrote, "If there is some benign God watching over us, we want Him to look upon us with the wisdom and compassion with which Mr. Pearson views his world."
As in his other recent novels, Pearson's characters are now older and wiser. Their cynicism struggles with their goodness. The satire is still there, and no small amount of heart. But as for that overwhelmingly compassionate view of others' eccentricities (I suppose some might call it naivete)... I'm glad the first book inspired me to seek it myself.
I'm always interested in feedback, via info at johnclaytonbooks.d.c
