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Liz D. (East Falmouth, MA)
The Blind Light
The Atomic Bomb the Cold War and it's aftermath hang over Stuart Evers novel The Blind Light. The loss of prewar innocence and fear of total destruction affect the lives of the characters, Drum and Carter. The friends come from different backgrounds. Carter comes from a wealthy background, while Drum is a member of the working class. After the war Drum, who is an auto worker is on strike. Carter offers to help him out, so Drum takes his family to Carter's estate. There the family remains for the rest of the book.
This was a rather difficult book to finish because the characters didn't speak to me and weren't particularity likable. Their lives weren't very interesting, some incidents were there for shock value Evers alluded to the bomb as being a fear by bringing up Doom Town occasionally as a mythic event which I didn't quite understand. I won't be telling my friends to read this book because the Blind Light didn't shine through.
Margaret R. (Claremont, CA)
The Stuff Nightmares Are Made Of
"The dead have insistent voices; they cut and jab. His father's especially." "The same sprung vigilance to her posture, though; like she was ready to dodge an oncoming hazard."
I often read before going to sleep and so it was with The Blind Light. There was little sleep that night and so daytime reading was the default. This book is a heavy lift at 533 pages but the heavy lift is not in its length but in its content. The story is relentlessly grim, manipulating, mean-spirited, humorless, and fragmented. While Stuart Evers is clearly a talented writer and can offer beautiful prose, he presents a nightmarish monotone of anxiety, human disconnect, and non-linear plot shards that leave the reader scrambling.
This book could have been a literary gift, taking us through 70 years of tumultuous western history and the lives of three generations. However, reading the unsuccessful stream of consciousness and third party narrative I staggered through it to gratefully greet the last page.
Margot_Polley
Too Many Distractions
What could have been a great family saga, Blind Light is crowded with so many writing techniques, (repetition, steam of consciousness) that the plot becomes hijacked. I really enjoyed learning about the fear the post war generation experienced in regards to nuclear destruction and Evers did a good job with his characters in that regard. The complex male friendship between Drum and Carter is the best part of the book. The novel felt overworked and Evers consistently sticks in rather distasteful short scenes that are totally unnecessary to the story. All in all, if the book was not over 500 pages, I might have rated it higher, but by the end I was exhausted and glad it was over. I don't think Blind Light would have enough overall appeal to make it a good book club choice and I suspect this one will get higher marks from professional reviews than from average readers.
Marjorie W. (Farmington CT, CT)
The Blind Light
Unfortunately, I did not find this book particularly interesting. I felt the author was unnecessarily wordy, the story heavy and depressing and the characters unlikable. Had I not been reading this to review, I would not have struggled through 500 pages.
Ruth_Hollandsworth
Families Intertwined
The lives of two men who became friends during military service, one privileged the other poor. Each one gets married, has children and grandchildren, the book chronicles how they interact through the generations. The first half of the book was interesting, the second half too many words, terrible sexual information that I felt was unnecessary, and a great ending! Would I recommend to friends or family, probably not. I felt 544 pages could easily have been condensed into about 300. I finished it but didn't have any strong feelings about the story or the characters!
Betty_Taylor
Much too long
This book was much too long. While it spanned a time of 60 years, in my opinion, much of it could have been cut without degradation of the story.
While much of the writing itself was beautiful, the moments when it flowed into what seemed a stream of consciousness quickly became dreary. The setting of Doom Town set the tone for exploration of the Cold War era and the emotions around it. For many years, the fear of a nuclear war loomed over our heads. On this note, I particularly liked this quote from the book - "To remind them that the bomb respects no god, no society, no man or ideal."
While I didn't particularly care for any of the characters (I just could not connect with them), I did like the complex bond between Drum and Carter that continued regardless their class differences. I liked how Carter continued to look out for Drum, although often to Carter's benefit. But I did not feel their estrangement later in the story was adequately explained. I also did not think the author's time progression over the decades flowed smoothly.
Overall, the book left me feeling empty. A lot of time was spent drudging through the lengthy novel with little sense of satisfaction. Sorry, this is not a book I can highly recommend.
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