The Fortress of Solitude by Jonathan LethemMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
I picked this book up due to the title…seemed appropriate for the times we are living through right now with social distancing, some people are holed up in solitude in their homes. I’m lucky to have another human with me.
The title of this book comes from the comic books, Superman and his Fortress. Comics are one of the underlying themes, as a young boy our main character Dylan Ebdus connects with other young neighbor boys with comics. When Dylan is slightly older he comes across a real life super-hero, who also is homeless and a drunk. He gives Dylan the ring that allowed him to fly as Aeroman.
Music is another theme throughout the book, with Dylan’s best friend Mingus Rude whose dad was a singer, Barrett Rude Junior. Music haunts Dylan when the song by Wild Cherry came out Play that funky music (white boy) came out. The backdrop is Dean Street, in Brooklyn that Ebdus is one of very few white families in the neighborhood. Being thrown into public school he was one of two or three white kids in each school he attended. Yes race is an important theme here too, how could it not. Later when Dylan is an adult he is a music critic.
There were a few quirks to the book, like the characters names were nearly always written out in full, each time. The separation from reality is where I always have difficulty with books. Without going into deep analysis of the book, why it was necessary, I’d like to say instead that it was not, that the book would be better without. Yet it did give the story momentum, occasional purpose, and the book title does call out to the superhero genre.
The book is long, yes overly long for me. I was relieved to finish reading it. There are good parts within, enough that it keep me going. Most of the book is taken with Dylan growing up, and when he became an adult it felt like the book was slipping, not quite as interesting. The final portion does help wrap up the story, closes a few loops. In the end, I'm just happy it's done and over.
March 22, 2020 – Started Reading
March 23, 2020 –
1.57% "barely started. this book has been sitting around my bookshelves since 2004 and picked it up, finally, since the title seemed appropriate for the current situation right now. no idea what I'm getting into, other than it's a long book."
page 8
April 7, 2020 –
71.62% "now our main character is an adult, and my enjoyment of the book is lessening."
page 366
April 13, 2020 – Finished Reading
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