Moonglow

by Michael Chabon
430 pgs

To understand and appreciate Moonglow by Michael Chabon, it's useful to read it as a memoir written as a novel. According to the narrator, who appears to be Chabon himself, the story is based on conversations he had with his grandfather near the end of his life. His grandfather recounts the most interesting and slightly fantastical events of his life, and then instructs his writer-grandson to write it all down and "make it mean something."

The story Chabon tells describes his grandparents' marriage, two Jews who survived Nazism. It also tells of his grandfather's brilliance, which was instrumental in laying the groundwork for early rocket technology and ultimately, space flight. He also recounts his grandfather's pursuit of the Nazi rocket-builder Wernher von Braun at the end of the war.

The reason I said it's useful to read the book as a memoir...written as a novel, is because the book seems to be a combination of the two. It's hard to believe Chabon didn't take quite a bit of literary license in telling the story. And the story he tells isn't told linearly, it jumps around between different times in his grandparents' lives. But there are still aspects of the book that read very much like a memoir. It's told with a matter-of-fact style, without the buildup to a climactic ending you'd expect to have from a novel.

I'm on the fence when it comes to how I ultimately felt about the book. It's beautifully told, and die-hard Chabon fans should enjoy it for all the same reasons they're fans of his. But for me, there have only been two books that I can say I've thoroughly enjoyed: The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay and The Yiddish Policemen's Union. Beyond those two, I've found his books a little hard to get into. I always appreciate his writing style and skill, but his stories have been hit or miss.

★ ★ ★ ☆ ☆

Telegraph Avenue

by Michael Chabon

I'm almost ashamed to admit this, but I really didn't care for Chabon's latest book Telegraph Avenue. I feel embarrassed because I know I'm part of a very small minority with my opinion and I feel like the problem must somehow lie with me.

First let me say that Chabon is an excellent writer. I've enjoyed the other half a dozen or so books by him I've read, especially The Amazing Adventures of Kavelier & Clay which won the 2001 Pulitzer Prize, and The Yiddish Policemen's Union, which won numerous awards, including the Hugo and Nebula awards. So it's not that I don''t like his writing, which I'll admit, with Chabon's monstrous vocabulary, and seemingly intentional efforts to entertain himself by seeing how far he can stretch his readers' acceptance of what should be allowed with the written word (in this one he wrote a sentence that was 12 pages long) isn't for everyone.

Maybe it was his characters in this one and their lack of appeal to me that would explain my ambivalence with the book. Whatever the case is, to those who really liked the book and who believe Chabon can do no wrong, I apologize, I just didn't get this one. To those who haven't read the book, but who plan to, good luck. I wish you well.

The story takes place in the Berkeley/Oakland area in 2004. The livelihoods of two friends and used record store owners, Archy Stallings and Nat Jaffe are threatened with the announcement of a huge mega-music store owned by an ex-NFL star that is planning to open down the street along Telegraph Avenue. Archy's very life is at risk as well when his pregnant wife Gwenn discovers his recent infidelities. Gwen and Nat's wife Aviva, who work together as midwives, likewise face a threat to their careers when a problematic delivery leads to a heated confrontation with a racist doctor at a nearby hospital and a moment of poor judgement for Gwen.

To further complicate the lives of Archy and Gwen, Archy's illegitimate 14-year old son Titus, whom Archy has never informed Gwen of his existence, shows up and wants to live with them--and falls madly in love with Nat's gay son Julius. I'll admit I enjoyed the parts of the story that focused on Archy's own father, a retired blaxploitation kung fu movie star who plans to make a comeback now that he's clean and sober. The rest of the book . . . not so much.

★ ★ ☆ ☆ ☆