The first novel by the
lead singer of the band
The Mountain
Goats is a strange and wonderful thing.
Clocking in at a scant 207 pages, Darnielle takes us into the mind of a
man who, years earlier, had attempted to commit suicide. The novel moves in reverse and we learn much
about Sean Philips the young man from his reflections as an adult. As teenage Sean lays recovering in the
hospital, the idea for a role-playing game begins to take shape in his
head. In the game,
Trace Italian, players must choose based on provided “moves” how
best to attempt to make it through a post-apocalyptic world into the safety of
the Trace fortress itself. Players mail
in their “moves” or decisions and Sean mails back their next options. His relationships with the players is professional
but a few become heavily invested in the game.
Sean gets to know two teen players, Lance and Carrie who play
Trace Italian as a team. Tragedy
strikes and somehow Sean has charges brought against him. Sean has never met
the players in person, so how can he be responsible for anything that happened
to them? The result is a book that winds
in and out and back upon itself as bits of Sean’s teenage self are glimpsed in
these new teens.
Darnielle is a great
writer. Reading a novel told by an
unreliable narrator can often be a frustrating task, but Darnielle makes it quite
enjoyable. This is a book that has many
layers and since it is short, can easily be read again for more nuance and
texture.
Check out a copy of John
Darnielle’s
Wolf In White Van from
the library today!
