Lucy Reviews .... That Old Cape Magic by Richard Russo

It's been an exciting week here at LEBSAB. I'm proud to finally unveil a new, semi-regular feature that I really hope will take off and catapult me into the superstardom only enjoyed by Ms. Michiko Kakutani (who will undoubtedly become my archrival). It's entitled "Lucy Reviews ....", and I hope to make it at least a bi-weekly column. So here's the deal. Ever since I launched this blog, publishers have been beating down my door begging me to review their books. They flattered, they bribed, and they cajoled. All I would hear day in and day out is "Mr. King would really appreciate a kind word from you" or "Mr. Bolano's ghost has been pestering us to contact you about his newly translated novel." I put them all off. Until now. That's right, yours truly now has a respectable career: that of a book reviewer.

For my inaugural column, I'll be reviewing Richard Russo's That Old Cape Magic published by Knopf and available for purchase on August 4, 2009. But before I start, I'd like to say thanks to Sonya at Knopf for sending me an advance copy.

Also, I'd like to comment on this totally awesome cover. It immediately tells you that this will be unlike any of Richard Russo's other novels. Also, it inspired me to learn to sit in chairs (see below).

So, anyway, I think a quick synopsis is in order. That Old Cape Magic is about Jack Griffin, a middle-aged college professor whose own marriage is crumbling as he reflects on his own life and prepares for his only daughter's wedding. Pretty vanilla, huh? That's what I thought too, until punches started getting thrown, cars started crashing, and elderly, wheelchair bound people started getting flung into trees.

To be fair, That Old Cape Magic is not Empire Falls, Nobody's Fool, or even The Risk Pool. But that shouldn't stop you from checking it out. It may not be Russo's masterpiece, but it is almost certainly funnier than anything else he has ever written, even Straight Man. My biggest piece of advice to you is that you should stick with this book. It gets off to a slow start, but really picks up.

One of the central themes of That Old Cape Magic really hit home for me. Much of Jack's problems revolve around his own parents' behavior (both past and present) and I can totally see how this can mess someone up for life. For instance, just the other day, I was crawling around with a fly swatter I found under the couch in one hand and a Kong ball covered with Bailey's slobber in the other. My mommy was trying to clean up the living room and all the blocks I had thrown everywhere, so I figured this was a great time to crawl over to Bailey's water dish and play in it. When mommy finally noticed, she screamed and took the fly swatter away from me, gave the Kong ball back to Bailey, and told me that I was not allowed to play in the water dish. Ever. I swear, sometimes the woman just won't let me have any fun!

Jack's memories don't go back this far, but I bet the underlying issue with his parents is something akin to the fly swatter incident of the other day. So I really want my mommy to read this book -- then maybe she'll change her ways and let me play with fly swatters or sit in Bailey's water bowl.

I give this book 8.5 rattles out of 10. Mr. Russo, if you are reading, I would like to note that I deducted .5 rattles due to the multiple instances where you disparage the midwest generally, and Indiana specifically. Come visit and you'll see that we're about more than corn and obesity. We've also got casinos. And property tax issues.

Stay tuned, because I have a lot of exciting things going on. I want to tell you all about the LEBSAB Neighborhood Outreach Program I started, and I should be back next week with a review of Pete Dexter's Spooner, due in bookstores in late September.

Also, maybe I can convince Knopf to send me a copy of Pat Conroy's South of Broad to review for early August. Sonya? How can you say no to this face?