Image provided by: University of Oregon Libraries; Eugene, OR
About The daily Astorian. (Astoria, Or.) 1961-current | View Entire Issue (May 17, 2018)
MAY 17, 2018 // 23 BOOKMONGER Evison writes the Great American Landscaping novel Among contemporary authors, the Pacific North- west’s own Jonathan Evison has developed one of the best touches for developing down-on-his luck Every- men. Via a growing stack of novels, many of them set west of the Salish Sea, the Bainbridge Island author has made it his life’s work to show that people of all shapes and sizes and back- grounds can be much more interesting and even more lovable than we might give them credit for at first glance. It happened in “The Revised Fundamentals of Caregiving” when we met loser Ben Benjamin, whose new and diminished career turn as a caregiver pits him against his first client, a ran- dy teenager in the advanced stages of Duchenne muscular dystrophy. It happened again in “This Is Your Life, Harri- et Chance,” when readers discovered that the 78-year- old widow who intends to embark alone on a cruise to Alaska is actually much more than the ditsy little old lady she might, at first glance, appear to be. And now, in “Lawn Boy,” we encounter Evison’s empathetic genius once again when he introduces us to Mike Muñoz, member of a local landscaping crew who yearns to pursue his “Lawn Boy” By Jonathan Evison Algonquin Books 320 pp $26.95 world way.” Sharply written and laugh-out-loud entertaining, this novel explores the class system in America, and how the ladder to the American Dream is fraught with broken rungs and splinters. Through his work, Mike sees how the rich folks live. And through Mike’s eyes, the reader sees how the system can be stacked against a guy who has a Hispanic surname, even if he is a conscientious and talented worker. But Mike is at his core an optimist, and although he wryly calls himself a “poster boy for the unwashed peasantry,” the decisions he begins to make for himself gradually help him invent his own version of a worthwhile future. “Lawn Boy” is a uniquely uplifting read. Jonathan Evison American Dream — if only he could figure out what that was. Mike grew up in a house- hold rife with disadvantages — his dad was a bum who left the family early on, his brother is developmentally disabled, and his mom has to work double shifts as a wait- ress at the local dive bar in an effort to make ends meet. Mike knows he wants something more out of life, so he embarks on a haphaz- ard course of self-appointed challenges to improve his circumstances. He courts the cute waitress at the local Mit- zel’s. He reads books from the local library. He puts in applications around town in the hope of securing a gig that’s a step up from mowing lawns even though he thinks that, in its purest form, yard work is noble. Along the way, there are missteps. And ideas that don’t pay off. And situational LOOKING TO PURCHASE OR REFINANCE A HOME, we are ready to help you with your mortgage needs changes, like when his boss gets arrested, or when his mom’s boyfriend moves in. When the latter occurs, Mike moves out back to the dilapidated work shed and improvises furniture out of concrete blocks and splin- tered plywood to make the place look “homey, in a third- The Bookmonger is Bar- bara Lloyd McMichael, who writes this weekly column fo- cusing on the books, authors and publishers of the Pacific Northwest. Contact her at bkmonger@nwlink.com HAPPY HOUR 4 TO 6 PM Everyday $ 2.50 wells and $ 1.50 Hamm’s SATURDAY MORNING Try our new Crab Omelette Lance Allbr itton with a Slutty Mary c:503-801-2400 o:503-338-5200 ENTERTAINMENT Shoring (from Portland, Americana) 1113 Commercial Street Astoria, OR 97103 503-468-0308 May 19th, 2018 MEAT BINGO 6:30 PM every Sunday night a 35 year tradition at Workers 281 W. Marine Drive Astoria • 503-338-7291
