I've always likened July to the Saturday of the weekend. If you dwell in the land of Monday through Friday working stiffs, Saturday is the greatest, because if nothing else you know you always have Sunday and another day of freedom, immediately behind it. After all, no one ever talks about the "Saturday night blues," right? So if July:Saturday, that obviously means August:Sunday. (Guess how well I did on that comprehension section of the SATs back in the day.) While I never really like seeing July come to a close, I do take comfort in knowing we have all of August stretching out ahead of us - which means plenty more dog days of summer ahead.
Speaking of the dog days, this summer has been utterly lovely and wonderful thus far. It certainly hasn't been slow but so far it's feeling good and long and crammed with all sorts of weekends away and outdoor activities and sunny days and the sorts of things that I have come to love about this season in the first place. Even my reading has followed suit, though I haven't been able to devote nearly enough time to the never-ending pile of books that are calling my name. I only made it through one book this month, and I'm about half-way though the classic The Grapes of Wrath...but more on that one come August.
I'd had this book on my radar for awhile now, particularly after it won The Pulitzer, but I was hesitant to read it. I'd picked up another book by Egan years prior that I hated - so much so that not only did I not finish it, I distinctly remember uncharacteristically hurling it across the room at one point, such was my disgust. Still, when it became our book club pick, I decided I'd give it a go; motivated somewhat by the fact that I'd given up entirely on our last book club read. I was warned by a few friends that I'd probably dislike the book, that it was odd and jumpy and just too far out there for a lot of people. I went in expecting the worst...and ended up being pleasantly surprised.
For starters, much of the book takes place in San Francisco or New York City, and centers around the live music scene. All things Kelli loves? Check. True, Egan does jump around quite a bit, but I happen to like books that leave little clues about their connecting thread. I enjoy the sort of intense reading that forces you to pay attention to how characters are connected, so long as the author does it well. Egan is smart about her choices, her characters, and her story line. There's even an entire chapter that is set up like a PowerPoint presentation - which I feared would fall flat, but ended up being one of the most interesting chapters in the book.
A Visit from the Good Squad is one of those books I find myself thinking about now that I've finished it, not so much for the plot line itself, but for each of the characters Egan created - all so well developed, crafted, and so uniquely "real." It certainly is not a book for everyone, but I for one am glad I read it - if for no other reason than the fact that I've learned not all of Egan's book cause me to lob them across a tiny apartment living room.
Phew. Thank goodness for that.
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