I was truly impressed with Michael Chabon's prose style, which manages to be gorgeous with feeling too showy. His metaphors are unexpected but apt, his characters are well drawn, his themes develop naturally, and he incorporates telling details from various subcultures (used record stores, midwifery, blaxploitation movies, fatherhood). Lastly, he captures the feel of the titular area of Berkeley/Oakland.
The only way in which Telegraph Avenue falls short is its plot. There isn't much of it, and I never felt engaged by the dramatic stakes of the story. Will the new megastore cause Brokeland Records to close? Will the midwives lose their hospital privileges? Will the broken-down blaxploitation star expose the youthful indiscretion of his successful old friend? I didn't really care about these questions. I loved many of the individual incidents, but the story didn't pull me on to the next one.
The only way in which Telegraph Avenue falls short is its plot. There isn't much of it, and I never felt engaged by the dramatic stakes of the story. Will the new megastore cause Brokeland Records to close? Will the midwives lose their hospital privileges? Will the broken-down blaxploitation star expose the youthful indiscretion of his successful old friend? I didn't really care about these questions. I loved many of the individual incidents, but the story didn't pull me on to the next one.
No comments:
Post a Comment