Giovanni has a
talent for mimicking people that as a child often lands him in
trouble. The only person who understands him is his smothering
mother. She encourages the talent that leads to his
success and eventual downfall.
He is leading an
ordinary life as a ticket agent when Max. a rather sleazy talent
agent, spots him, puts him on the stage, and changes his life.
From the stage he gets into movies and even a political run, but the
threads of his life unravel and the ending is quite sad.
The blurb on this
book calls it “A hilarious and dazzling debut novel.” Personally,
I didn't find it either hilarious or dazzling. The first chapters
were relatively interesting. Giovanni's childhood and later discovery
by Max are a rather fascinating character sketch. However, as the novel
progresses into his later success and eventual downfall, I thought
the author was trying to build a short story into a novel.
This is an almost
totally character driven story. The setting is sketchy. Giovanni
moves from town to city, but we never have a clear picture of his
surroundings. I enjoy novels that have attractive background. This
book disappointed in that area.
I can't recommend
this book unless you love long character studies. I found it hard to
get into and the three divisions didn't help the flow of the
narrative.
I reviewed this book
for Net Galley.
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