Blue Angel : A Novel

Rating:
Summary: a lost angel
Review: this was my first francine prose novel. i must say i really enjoyed it. crackling writing, poignant moments, crisp characters. given the topics: modern academia, political correctness, and careening life transitions for both young and old, i'm not expecting or desiring labored psychological narrative, mann-like description, or plots that would make dickens weep in confusion. i simply want an enjoyable, thoughtful, literary novel. and that is what the reader receives with blue angel. i recommend it without reservation.
as an aside, if you've read other reviews you'll note the frustration expressed by readers regarding the author's choice not to explore the novel's 'why's?', to extensively explore why a character does or does not do something, motivation, etc.
Hello! there is no third voice narrator providing an all knowing, all seeing guidebook for the reader. the novel is entirely speaking from the point of view of the main character, Swenson. the reflection regarding events and emotions are all his or his speculations on others experience. his alternating brillant insight, haplessness, and cluelessness is what makes him so infuriating and sympathetic. the best novel i've ever read of a mid-age american man trying to just get through, terrible flaws and all, is joyce carol oates' 'what i lived for' (which was so substantial that it should have won the pulitzer or national book award that year). anyway, read on and enjoy!