Further Adventures [Paperback]

Jon Stephen Fink (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1993

A long-retired radio personality decides to re-emerge as the ""Green Ray""--a Depression-era radio superhero--in order to rescue a damsel in distress and set the world right.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

This massive novel shifts from promising delight to annoying didacticism as it tells the epic story of Ray Green, a fictional 1930s radio actor who portrayed The Green Ray, stouthearted protector of truth, justice and all that is best in the American spirit. Ne Reuven Agranovsky (a son of Russian Jewish immigrants), Green continues an obsession with his superhero persona after the show goes off the air in the 1940s. Fink traces Green's quest to make the heart of America larger during the promise of the 1950s, the tumult of the 1960s and 1970s and the greed of the 1980s. Even when all hope seems lost as the novel approaches our time, a suicidal Green decides to go on living. The theme of this first novel by Fink ( Cluck! The True Story of Chickens in the Cinema ) is a compelling one, and its realistic nostalgia has some power. Unfortunately, Fink's style all but debilitates his message. The tale is told in Green's prosaically unsophisticated voice, with key words in nearly every sentence capitalized to indicate their importance. By the end of 600 pages, readers will feel as though they have been beaten about the head with a badly worded inspirational greeting card.
Copyright 1992 Reed Business Information, Inc.

Review

“Marvelous. …[its] two plots, past and present, trot in and out of the ring like trick ponies, carrying an impossibly colorful but appealing cast of characters.…The plot is as absurd as it is intricate…it’s fun and sad at the same time. --This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 597 pages
• Publisher: St Martins Pr (January 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0312090595
• ISBN-13: 978-0312090593
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 6 x 1.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #8,220,753 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Multi-layered and very rewarding, May 13, 2000

By 

"thisnicknameisnottaken" - See all my reviews

This review is from: Further Adventures (Paperback)

_Further Adventures_ is a semi-picaresque tale about the search for Goodness and Truth (sic!). It's neither new-age saccharine nor knee-jerk nihilistic, and offers a fresh take on a range of major American literary themes - the immigrant experience (both legal and illegal), family, landscape and character, history and memory, the Depression - as well as looking at a few less common ones, like ageing.

The book falters a little towards the middle, but quickly picks up again. (This is the only reason I don't give it five stars, by the way). It does take quite a few risks with structure, but all of them pay off, making it a truly unique and eminently readable book that you won't forget in a hurry.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A brilliant story of a complete innocent a la Quixote, January 1, 2007

By 

Kathy Bacon (Virginia) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Further Adventures (Hardcover)

I love this story! Ray Green, the central character, is a brilliant amalgam of innocence, humor, and truth-seeker. Mr. Fink's writing style is ground-breaking, deleriously funny, and deeply touching as Ray Green's personality is brought to life immediately with a letter to the reader. The reader is at once drawn in by Mr. Green's narration - his speech patterns reminescent of eastern European immigrants. Ray Green is funny! His comments, insights, and perceptions of the world provide a humorous window into the life of a character who may have gotten a few things tragically wrong, but seeks The Truth nonetheless. Jon Stephen Fink is a gifted writer, and the characters he creates, both in this novel, as well as in "If He Lived" are people I wish I could meet in person - each of his books leaves me wanting more. I highly recommend any of Mr. Fink's books to those who seek genuine, finely-crafted writing and not the mass-marketed crap for sale these days.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Take the dare and try to forget this book!, December 19, 1999

By 

Mark J.H. Terry (New Haven) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Further Adventures (Hardcover)

Read the first page of this unforgettable novel and you'll have no choice but to accompany Ray Green on his spellbinding hero's journey. There are 2 books in my personal library that I simply will not allow out of the house, and Further Adventures is one of them.