From Publishers Weekly
An obscure Minneapolis writer is touched by the "kiss of fame" in Keillor's latest, a sly romantic comedy-cum-literary satire that begins when Larry Wyler's first novel, Spacious Skies, takes off and hits the bestseller list. Wyler longs to accept an invitation to go to Manhattan and work for the New Yorker, but his earnest, stodgy wife, Iris, is content to stay in St. Paul and continue her work with the elderly. The siren song of New York proves too strong for Wyler, though, and the writer reports to legendary editor William Shawn and rubs elbows with the likes of Updike and Salinger. But publisher Harold Ross has been succeeded by a mafioso called Tony Crossandotti, who forces Wyler into a deadly showdown after the hapless writer fails to get a poem published for the thug. In an equally cheeky storyline, Wyler begins writing an advice column for a Minneapolis paper when his work at the New Yorker flags and his second novel tanks, and Keillor uses the conceit to pen a series of running letters from various lovelorn characters who call on "Mr. Blue" to help sort out their lonely lives (reprising his real-life turn as an advice columnist for the online magazine Salon). The material on Wyler's up-and-down relationship with Iris is less successful, although Keillor's prose does turn touching down the stretch when they reconcile and put Wyler's numerous infidelities behind them. With his trademark droll humor, Keillor exposes the foibles of human nature and pokes fun at our more absurd conventions. The icing on the cake is the use of some obviously autobiographical material from Keillor's publishing experiences in this wry send-up of literary life.
Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information, Inc.
*Starred Review* Popular public-radio icon Keillor departs from his usual setting of Lake Wobegon. Our hero Larry Wyler starts out in St. Paul, living down the hill with the working class, married to his college sweetheart--the quasi-saint Iris--who pays more attention to the poor and downtrodden than to her lonely husband. But when Larry's first novel,
Spacious Skies, hits number one on the best-seller list, he sets sail for New York, following his dreams to rub elbows with the literati. Larry even lands an office at the
New Yorker, just down the hall from J. D. Salinger, and he engages in hallway conversations with Calvin Trillin. The good times begin to wane, however, when his follow-up novel,
Amber Waves of Grain, flops miserably, and he is forced to accept the offer to be Mr. Blue in an advice column, "Ask Mr. Blue." (Keillor actually did write an advice column called "Dear Mr. Blue" for salon.com for several years.) Not exactly the sophisticated literary position of his dreams, but, hey, nothing else is getting written, and it helps pay the bills. What Larry never expected is how doling out advice to lonely hearts would help him realize what his own heart truly desires. Keillor, a natural storyteller, blends humor and compassion with just a touch of cynicism, cooking up a funny, insightful, and touching story of ambition, sacrifice, and love.
Mary Frances WilkensCopyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved
