BOOKMONGER
A full-hearted story collection
Jess Walter is back. Not that the Spo-
kane author ever really went anywhere, or
maybe he did but that’s not the point. What
I’m trying to get at here is that while Wal-
ter’s last novel, “The Cold Millions,” offered
his dependably fine and perceptive takes on
humanity, it was a sober tale.
Conversely, “The Angel of Rome,” a
brand-new collection of short stories, dis-
plays the author’s effervescence. Walter has
a kaleidoscopic ability to consider the human
experience — pathos, love, anxiety, heroism,
hubris, terror, hope — but with each twist
of the plot, he reconfigures those bits so that
we see intriguing new angles to a character’s
motivations and options.
For those who love Northwest settings for
fiction, this volume delivers. From Bend to
Boise, Idaho and Spokane, Washington, to
Stateline, Idaho, Walter particularly focuses
on the interior Northwest.
But the title story in this collection takes
This week’s book
‘The Angel of Rome’ by Jess Walter
HarperCollins – 288 pp – $27.99
place in Italy. “The Angel of Rome” is a
lovely novelette about Jack Rigel, a hapless
undergraduate from Nebraska who fudged
the facts on his application to get into a Latin
class taught at the Vatican. Rigel’s real moti-
vation in getting to Italy is to reinvent him-
self as someone who’s exciting in order to
impress a particular girl — or, really, any girl.
When Rigel arrives in the eternal city, he
quickly realizes that he is in way over his
head. His command of Latin is bad and his
Italian isn’t much better. But when he bum-
bles onto a movie set and meets a cast of
characters whose very business is reinventing
themselves for each film they appear in, he
gains some insight and impromptu coaching.
“The Angel of Rome” is a delightful bon-
bon of a story, leavened with laugh-out-loud
laughter. But it contains some observations
that readers may recognize as useful life les-
sons, too.
In this story, and in several others, Wal-
ter writes about aging. His characters grapple
with the physical aches and the bittersweet
wisdom that seem to pile up without one’s
noticing over an accretion of years.
In a story called “Fran’s Friend Has Can-
cer,” a crotchety old husband named Max
rues that stretches of life that once seemed
limitless are now but “a finger snap” when he
reflects on it all.
In “Before You Blow,” when a woman
notices a bus bench advertisement featuring
a personal injury lawyer, that’s all it takes for
her to remember the exact moment, decades
earlier, when she became an adult — and it’s
not what you might think. Still another char-
acter in another story believes that, when it
comes to memory, feeling is more important
than precision.
There is only one clunker in this collec-
tion: “Balloons” is about a lascivious next-
door neighbor. For this reader, it went over
like a lead balloon. But the rest of these sto-
ries — oh my. They are filled with wry wit,
politics and poignancy. They’ll surprise you
and lift your spirits. This collection, overall,
is a winner.
The Bookmonger is Barbara Lloyd McMi-
chael, who writes this weekly column focus-
ing on books, authors and publishers of
the Pacific Northwest. Contact her at bar-
baralmcm@gmail.com.
“Inuit Soul Music” – August 20!
Often described as “Inuit Soul
Music,” Pamyua showcases Inuit
culture though a compelling
performance of music, costume
and dance, weaving traditional
melodies with contemporary
vocalization and instrumentation.
Pamyua, 7 pm, August 20, 2022
More Shows Coming Right Up…
‘The Angel of Rome’ is by Jess Walter.
Hell’s Belles
Comedy Night
Mexico Lindo
August 12, 2022
Pitch-perfect AC/DC,
delivered by a ferocious
and highly charged
all-female rock band.
September 10, 2022
Three hilarious
performers, sure
to make you
laugh and smile.
September 16, 2022
A glorious journey
celebrating the culture of
Mexico via song, dance,
sound, color and costume.
Buy your tickets today! Online or at the Box Office.
www.libertyastoria.org
Downtown Astoria’s historic Liberty Theatre was made for music, dance,
theatre, readings, film, comedy, children’s programs – and you!
1203 Commercial Street | Astoria, OR 97103 | 503.325.5922 | www.libertyastoria.org
THURSDAY, AUGUST 11, 2022 // 15