Customer Reviews

San Remo Drive

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Leslie Epstein's novel of a childhood/adolescence in mid-century Hollywood as told by the novel's narrator, painter Richard Jacobi, is a mix of memory and fiction that illuminates expansive themes with excellent prose in a brave, sometimes controversial, always entertaining style that can be expected from a great writer who always seems to have a great story to tell.
The first half of the book is four tales that each focus on a life-changing event and are brought alive by the surrounding narration. In this section, the writing is direct and unapologetic, recounting instances both pleasurable and painful with a candor that at times borders on the dispassionate but nonetheless evokes a range of emotion: loneliness, irony, love, lust, betrayal-and at times caused me to laugh until I cried. Though comprised of separate instances going back and forth over different periods of time and involving very different circumstances, this first half strives for a level of wholeness and unity that, for the most part, is achieved.
The second half of the novel is set many years later and features Richard moving back to his old family house on San Remo Drive with his wife and adopted twin sons. From this point the novel flows much more smoothly, and the fact that it is one continuous story without chronology shifts doesn't hurt. For me, the highlight of the entire novel appears here, in the characterization of Richard's wife, Marcia. At the end of the day she is the most honest and true of all of them (and funny as hell, too). Her jealousy of Richard's ever-present muse, Madeline, and the events that unfold as a result are at once hilarious, shocking, and complex, and above all relevant to everyone who, as human nature often demands, gives too much of themselves to too many people.
I enjoyed the book immensely as a lovely tie-together of past, present and future, of homage to family and the effect it has on art (both fictional and real), and of identity, love and life through generations.

Epstein has delivered a solid body of work over the years of his writing career. However, I didn't read San Remo Drive as part of his other work; rather, as a native Californian, I looked forward to revisiting those long ago days of clear blue skies, pristine coastline and miles of ripening orange groves.

This particular novel begins with the earliest years of the Jacobi family, after the father has died, when Lotte Jacobi does her best to keep her small family together. Mother and sons reminisce about family adventures, occasional fights and rubbing elbows with Hollywood icons. The two young brothers, Bartie and Richard, are certainly influenced by their parent's eccentric lifestyle and tendency toward dramatic confrontations. Richard, as an artist, interprets his unresolved issues on canvas, while Bartie writes movie scripts, boxes of them, forever trolling for a movie deal.

Lotte Jacobi proves a poor judge of character, especially when dealing with men. She makes some disastrous decisions that throw her family into hard times economically and emotionally. Still, emotions are Lotte's strong suit and her presence in both boy's lives is evident, as she directs their decisions and choices far into adulthood. They eventually lose their family home because of Lotte's inability to handle finances.

The second half of the novel is more cohesive and speaks to the strong influence of family on both sons. Richard Jacobi, now a successful artist, moves back into the family home with his wife, Marcia and two adopted American-Indian boys, hoping to recapture his fragile childhood memories. It would appear that he has married a woman much like his mother, raising his sons in the same dysfunctional atmosphere as his own childhood.

Richard has made his artistic reputation through a series of paintings of Madeline, a former next-door neighbor cum longtime lover and is preparing for a show of his work in Paris. However, he hasn't given enough thought to his wife's real jealousy of her supposed rival for Richard's affections, too willing to ignore the signs of trouble, much as the infamous Lotte modeled for him. Nor has his aging mother changed in any significant way, except perhaps that she is more tedious in her dotage. The characters may change, but the chaos endures.

Epstein painstakingly recounts the frenetic dialog, the hysteria and the arguments of generations of Jacobis. This family never gains emotional maturity, even as adults with young children. This novel has enjoyed rave reviews and The New York Times review calls it "one of the four best Hollywood novels ever written," with favorable comparison to Fitzgerald's Last Tycoon and Schulberg's What Makes Sammy Run. San Remo Drive appears to be an acquired taste and Epstein fans will not be disappointed. Luan Gaines/2003.

Epstein at his very best- a poignant memoir of his boyhood in the Hollywood of the '50's. It is the story of excruciating loss and the painful task of revisiting his past. Against the backdrop of Malibu, lemon groves, sunshine and his beloved home on San Remo Drive, he weaves the story of his own redemption through Richard Jacobi, the narrator.
I couldn't put the book down.

"San Remo Drive" is a pseudo-autobiography, a fiction novel using real people as templates, real events as scenarios in the book, and a bit of imagination for entertainment and the purpose of sending a message. I finished the whole book in one sitting and I can't recommend it highly enough.

The protagonist of the novel is Richard Jacobi, whom we understand to be Leslie Epstein's alter ego. His father, Norman, a successful Hollywood screenwriter, dies after driving his car into a tree when Richard is a teenager and this catastrophic event changes Richard's life. This parallels the death of Epstein's own father, Philip G. Epstein, who wrote the screenplays of "Casablanca" and "Arsenic and Old Lace," when he was 14. Richard's mother, Lotte, a beautiful socialite, struggles to hold the family (which also includes Richard's brother, Barton, who probably has ADHD and is mildly retarded but has a way of stating truths that other characters avoid) together after this horrible event with limited success.

The novel is written in a series of episodes. In the first episode, Lotte dates Rene, a French painter whom Richard, a very talented artist, dislikes intensely. His memory constitutes a scene on a beach in which he expresses his dislike for Rene to Lotte and Rene himself. Lotte ignores his warnings and marries Rene anyway, at which point Rene loots her accounts and they are divorced.

In the next episode, Norman testifies hilariously before the House Committee on Un-American Activites (an episode which actually happened to Philip Epstein). He returns home to backlash from his conservative neighbors, and sends Richard and Barton on a sightseeing trip to New Mexico so they can avoid the situation. While driving around, they receive word that Norman has died (obviously, this book is not in chronological order). They return home and the turmoil begins.

The next episode chronicles Richard's desire to lose his virginity. He returns home from Yale for Christmas (his mother has had to sell their house on San Remo Drive to pay for his tuition) and goes to Tijuana with Barton and some friends, where they wind up in erotic clubs and eventually meet up with prostitutes, fulfilling their desires.

In the final episode, Richard finds some African-American men working under his house to repair their sewer. He invites them to swim in the family pool and tries to convince them to vote for Truman, which doesn't work and ends up offending the men, who are disillusioned with American politics. One of the men later tells the Jewish Richard horror stories about the Holocaust while his friend molests Richard. They are interrupted by Barton.

The latter half of the book departs from the reality of Leslie Epstein's life. It occurs when Richard has grown up, gotten married, and bought back the house on San Remo Drive. He has made a name for himself painting nude pictures of his childhood sweetheart, Madeline, and is about to open an exhibition in Paris. He and his wife, Marcia, have adopted twin Navajo boys and have settled into a comfortable lifestyle. However, Marcia becomes enraged about Richard's relationship with Madeline and they have a fight. Marcia leaves and takes the boys with her. In his distress, Richard goes and has sex with Madeline. The twins wind up at Barton's house when Marcia can't take their hyperactivity any more, and Richard goes to collect them. The family is reunited, ironically, when Lotte has a heart attack while driving her car and dies. This last segment is complete fiction, as Leslie Epstein is actually head of the creative writing program (fittingly) at Boston University and has a quite stable family situation with three children (although he does have twin boys, one of whom is Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein, the similarities end there). However, his fiction is just as compelling as his autobiography.

Epstein writes with a refreshingly honest, wryly humorous style in prose that is elegant but not obfuscated by abstractions and antiquated ideas and words. The book has several sex scenes that may offend some, but Epstein does not pull any punches at any time throughout the book, for which he should be commended.

I just read San Remo Drive in one sitting. At the end of each chapter I couldn't keep myself from going on to the next. The story is so naturally told, and so intimate, you can't believe how it all comes together. This is the story of a family that keeps together through everything, holding fast, only breaking apart and disappearing to return anew, like memories. An astonishing work, and a literary marvel. San Remo Drive is a masterpiece. I want to read everything Epstein has written now.

epstein does not shy away from the ugly, the raw, the core. with wit, eloquence, sensitivity, and a profound insightfulness unique to only a few writers, he has created a a masterpiece.

Courageous recreation of 1950's boyhood in LA. At once hopeful and terrifying. Pansies the centers of which look like the teardrops of cockerspaniels. A cocker spaniel attacked by a police dog. Sea foam like animal fat. The McCarthy hearings as only a thinker of great humanity and comic breadth could portray. Full of heart. Readers, take note.

A lovely, frightening, hopeful book. Moving and honest. Pansies reminding us of the tearful eyes of cocker spaniels. A cocker spaniel nearly eaten by a Police Dog. Sea foam like animal fat. Astounding images on every page. Humor. Courage.

Proving that there must be more to love than hate.