Customer Reviews

Among the Dead: A Novel

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an easy book to admire, if a hard one to enjoy. More than any other contemporary satirist, Tolkin has the gift of implicating his readers in the sins of his nightmarish protagonists. "Among the Dead" ends with a vision that is as apt and Old Testament-flavoured as that which caps off Flannery O'Connor's short story "Revelation". The final message - "This is more than you deserve"- reveals the kind of grace that can only come from a terrifyingly clear-eyed and angry God. The novel as a whole has a very surreal quality. In a wonderful set piece on a train, we realize Frank Gale, through his grief, conceit and weakness, is somehow dreaming the world around him into existence; it's a neat technical trick that allows the author to use mood to stand in for plausible plot and character development. (Frank's interactions with the airline representatives and his brother Lowell are not always credible, but it hardly seems to matter.) The pacing is excellent and the suspense wire-taut, which makes this a quick, while still grueling, read. Weak-stomached readers should be warned: this novel has some of the most gut-churning, violent prose I've ever read.

The sense of humor displayed in this book is, as Harlan Ellison puts it, "so black it's ultraviolet." One can only assume that Tolkin is a man who has suffered many a dark night of the soul; he is one of the few writers whose characters are smart enough to realize the implications of their predicaments, and actually consider the long-term consequenses of their actions. Within this framework, he manages to explore the nature of guilt, the relentlessness of the media and how the public feeds off the tragedies of others...and often makes it laugh-out-loud funny. A throughly underappreciated novel from one of our most throughly underappreciated writers.

I think this book has never gotten its due. A classic it isn't, but it has more wit and insight than any John Grisham, in my humble opinion. A man cheats on his wife and after much soul searching, decides to confess on vacation. After going ahead, both wife and daughter die in a plane crash. The book then shifts to an assortment of different characters' reactions to this tragedy. The most interesting part of this book iS the details Tolkin goes into on airline procedure after a crash. How they kiss the buttocks of relatives so they won't sue them, and so on. It's both a sad and funny book, and best of all, memorable.

You wouldn't think that a novel concerning a man who has just lost his wife and daughter in a plane crash would contain laugh-out-loud dialogue and situations. Michael Tolkin, who wrote the novel in which the movie, 'The Player', is based, does a masterful job of writing. This tragic-comedy takes place, for the most part, in the mind of the "hero" of the novel. His thoughts, doubts, worries, and questions (MANY questions) make this an fascinating insight into the mind of a very troubled man. The supporting cast include his former lover who wants nothing more to do with him; his caring brother, who is repeatedly referred to as "Lowell, who is a homosexual"; his pain-in-the-ass parents; and the attractive airline representitive hoping to dissuade a lawsuit. A thouroughly different and enjoyable read

Tolkin is a true believer. This is the stuff that keeps me up at night.

I wonder what the atrocious "Deep Impact" would have been like if they adhered to the tone of Tolkin's original idea. The book? Relentless.

Maybe I'm a sicko, but I've read this book not once, not twice, but THREE times now. It's got a clever plot, a wonderful sense of foreboding and sadness that, mixed with the zany hilarity of it all, makes for a one-of-a-kind read. If you seek fun, fast, literary fiction, this is one you've got to pick up. I just wish this dude would write more novels.

This is the first book I recommend to people who looking for something cool to read that's off the beaten path. The second would be "A Scanner Darkly," and there's some sort of connection there, but I can't figure out exactly what it is. It should have been a bigger hit, but I must say I like having this be "my" book. Mr. Tolkin, if you're reading this, please write more!

It appears thus far that I'm the only one who doesn't believe this book is some profound work. After reading the reviews on the back cover, I wondered if I even read the same book. I must state that the premise of this book had extreme potential. The storyline was great with a HUGE event that happens to the main character, Frank Gale (not wanting to give anything away). However, the pages and pages and pages and pages of describing "WHAT IF this event DIDNT happen how would things be" made reading it unbearable. Every other scenario was disected and I just had to skip over this overkill of filler and get to the real story. I understand that some may say that the point of the book is to understand Frank's every thought but is it really necessary? Tolkin should've just stuck to the story.

I think this is one of those books that you read and might get caught up in but when it is finally over, you ask yourself "Now just what the heck did I read anyway?" The story here does not come so much from the action but from the dialog, both verbal and the lead character's own internal dialog. Outside of one section where the character is outside, the novel takes place mostly in hotels or rooms or other cramped quarters which may add a bit to the gloomy atmosphere.

The story follows a man who is late catching the flight he is scheduled to be on with his wife and daughter because he is too busy breaking off an extra-marital affair. He tells them to fly without him, traqedy results, and things just keep getting worse and worse as the events unfold. The old adage of "whatever could go wrong, does go wrong" applies here bringing you an ending that is so depressing, you are happy the story is finally over.

I know there are some social(??)messages in the story about the way a man's mind works, about how the media and corporations manipulate and capitalize on tragic events in order to make(or in the case of the airline in the story, not lose) money, and about relationships, both familial and friendly. The novel works on this so-called "cerebral level."

But if you are looking for a breezy, on-the-beach kind of novel, do not read this one. I have not read Mr. Tolkin's earlier work, "The Player," but if the movie is any indication, then you know he is capable of making a situation both scary and humorous at the same time. Parts of "Among the Dead" are like this.

Overall, expect this novel to be kind of like a classic Bruce Springsteen song; well done, something you might enjoy, but the message it sends is awfully depressing.

This is a work of complete ferocity, simultaneously horrifying and hilarious. So astounding in places I wanted to memorize what I was reading. It's as if Dostoyevski were from Los Angeles. Don't miss it.