The Ha-Ha: A Novel [Paperback]

Dave King (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 6, 2006

Howard Kapostash has not spoken in thirty years. The small repertory of gestures and simple sounds that he uses to communicate lead most people to assume he is disturbed. No one understands that Howard is still the same man he was before his tragic injury. But when he agrees to help an old girlfriend by opening his home to her nine-year-old son, the presence of this nervous, resourceful boy in his life transforms Howard utterly. He is afforded a rare glimpse of life outside his shell ? with all its exuberant joys and crushing sorrows.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Peel back the made-for-TV-movie premise of Dave King's The Ha-Ha and you'll find a shrewd, engrossing, and occasionally gritty first novel in the tradition of Jane Smiley. Howard is a brain-damaged Vietnam vet who can't speak or write, but who has managed to establish a reasonably good life in his small Midwestern hometown. In fact, Howard's chief limitation isn't his silence but his lingering romantic attachment to his high school girlfriend, Sylvia, now the drug-addicted single mother of a nine-year-old boy named Ryan (not Howard's child). Accustomed to Howard's devotion--and equally accustomed to rejecting his love, like a campfire she pees on again and again--Sylvia more or less dumps Ryan on him when she is forced to enter rehab. Yes, the handicapped vet must forge a relationship with the sullen fatherless boy. With material as Hallmark-tinged like this, it's only through vivid, honest, and far from syrupy characterization that King keeps sentimentality at bay. You can predict what happens when the gruff Howard begins to coach Little League (aw, shucks), but not his ferocious reaction to Sylvia's eventual betrayal. A skillful debut with several surprises. --Regina Marler --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Publishers Weekly

King offers a deeply genuine performance of this subtle yet affecting novel told from the perspective of Howard Kapostash, a wounded Vietnam veteran whose injury has left him unable to read, write or speak, but who is, as the card he's always reluctant to give people points out, "of normal intelligence." After Howard agrees to look after his ex-girlfriend's son, Ryan, while she is in rehab, Ryan's presence profoundly alters the lives of Howard and his three housemates. The vital element to the success of this recording is how Kinney's reading voice meshes with Howard's narrative one. Kinney does an excellent job with Howard's various moods, from the quiet joy of watching Ryan's Little League practice to the simmering and occasionally explosive frustration of not being able to communicate his thoughts. He also slides easily between the Texas drawl of one character and the slangy banter of a feckless pair of 20-somethings living under Howard's roof. The production includes some aptly employed musical accompaniment. Soft piano, for instance, tinkles in the background as Howard remembers the mine explosion that injured him, and a buoyant, guitar-driven theme recurs but avoids being cloying or overdone. The same can be said for the book itself, which—though loosely predictable—remains earnest and inspiring. Simultaneous release with the Little, Brown hardcover (Forecasts, Nov. 15, 2004). (Jan.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Back Bay Books (March 6, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316010715
• ISBN-13: 978-0316010719
• Product Dimensions: 5.5 x 1 x 8.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (74 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #992,521 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

40 of 41 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Paean to Love and Patience, March 23, 2005

By 

J Scott Morrison (Middlebury VT, USA) - See all my reviews
(TOP 50 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ha-Ha: A Novel (Hardcover)

It's a cliché but I found myself rationing the amount of this book I would read each day because I didn't want it to end and I wanted to savor its unselfconscious wisdom slowly. Frankly, I've never read anything like it. It's told from inside the head of a man whose Vietnam War head injury leaves him unable to speak. But his internal monolog is so rich, observant, feelingful that the pain of his not being able to express himself except through his actions becomes a paean to the virtues of patience over adversity, expression of love through loving actions rather than words, and the wisdom of living life as it is, not as it might have been. King's prose is carefully and poetically chosen. His observations of the little things feel true and important. I am ready to predict from this first novel that this is an important writer just revving up for a huge career.

Scott Morrison

25 of 26 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A heart-rending tale of betrayal and hope, January 1, 2005

By 

Chris Orcutt "Chris Orcutt" (Upstate New York) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Ha-Ha: A Novel (Hardcover)

Dave King's THE HA-HA gives a unique look into the mind of a man unable to speak, and while this novel succeeds on many levels, its greatest success comes in effectively duplicating in the reader's mind the same frustrations felt by the lead character, Howard. At every turn, this story tugs at your heartstrings, making you wish poor Howard were able to communicate his feelings for his old flame, Sylvia, and her son, Ryan. This is a true tour de force of point-of-view characterization, and for any readers who enjoy a good character-driven story, this is a remarkable novel.

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very special literature, December 29, 2004

By 

Jacamar Rose (Pepper Pike, Ohio) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Ha-Ha: A Novel (Hardcover)

This book, so different from most of today's action/romance schlock, grabs your heart and twists it until it breaks, yet the humanity of the characters offers hope to alleviate the pain. Dave King brings a profound empathy to his story of a man thrust inward by his disability who learns that he still can have a meaningful - even fulfilling - life, can reach out to make a difference in the lives of others, can move beyond his decades-old memories. Not an easy read, but an important one which will stay with you long after the last page is read. This is literature at its finest.