This collection of short stories absolutely destroyed me and I mean that in the best possible way. Bonnie Jo Campbell is my new favorite writer and it's a shame this didn't win the National Book Award. I suspect the reason it didn't was because it was labeled as 'too depressing', which for me, is a cop-out.
American Salvage is confrontational. Each story forces you to examine your own life and the lives of these Michiganders. In most cases, the characters are living in economical ruin, what would be considered poverty. They are people clutching onto the past, living day to day with what they have, but have hope for the future. Well, I saw hope in these characters and I think Campbell saw hope too.
Probably the most apt metaphor for the collection is the salvage yard, which takes center stage in King Cole's American Salvage. Campbell describes the catalytic converters that Johnny and his uncle save from broken down cars, "...mostly they were dirty and rusted from the slush and mud and road salt, but each of their bodies contained a core of platinum." These people are those catalytic converters, their lives covered in slush and mud, abandoned by society, living on the fringes...but at their core is something of value. They are still human beings, worthy of receiving and giving love. These are not bad people. They are just doing what they have to do to survive, to feel human.
There is a strong theme of redemption and forgiveness that runs through the stories that left me feeling hopeful for most of these characters. Each are searching for a modicum of redemption, something to absolve them from their lives, and in a handful of situations, redemption is achieved. Maybe not in the traditional sense, but these characters and their lives aren't traditional, so why should their redemption be?
I could go on for a few pages about the richness of American Salvage but I will just say: read it. Of the maybe 50 books I've read this year, this is Top Five. Personal favorites were The Yard Man, The Inventor, The Burn, Winter Life, King Cole's American Salvage, and Storm Warning...though all the other ones were magnificent too.
"Johnny nodded to Slocum, not in agreement with anything he was saying, but because he realized that the man was indeed a monster and that he was also a regular guy like Johnny, the same guy Johnny had talked to until four in the morning. Slocum was a screwup, the way Johnny was a screwup, only much worse. Slocum should go to prison for life, but that didn't mean hew was all that different from Johnny or anybody else." Pg. 128
No comments:
Post a Comment