About:
Under the Falls by Richard Russo tells of a small town boy who made it big in the rock world and is now coming back for one night - he thinks. Mr. Russo is an educator, screenwriter and Pulitzer Prize winner for his novel Empire Falls.
- 256 pages
- Publisher : Knopf
- Language : English
- ISBN-10 : 0593805100
My rating for Under the Falls - 4
Buy Under the Falls from Amazon.com*
More books by Richard Russo*
Thoughts:
I enjoy stories about working-class small towns and the complex ties which bind communities in decline. Empire Falls was an excellent depiction of such town, and I was glad to pick up this book by the author.
In Under the Falls by Richard Russo captures the atmosphere of a small town and the gritty characters. The novel, however, is a dark crime thriller, fast paced, with a mystery involved.
Like Empire Falls, the sense of place is the best part of the book. Stone Mountain has the same issues that real towns have. An opioid epidemic is running amok, among residents who can see, and feel the economic decline in real time.
When the thriller takes center stage, is when the book starts to falter. I thought the plot was disjointed and somewhat rushed, as opposed to fast-paced and tight. I often felt as if the scenes were forced together with little depth and character development.
Man of la Book's Margin Note: The Anatomy of Small-Town Disillusionment
The books I've read which take place in small American towns, use the isolated geography to keep characters with shared history trapped inside a pressure cooker. When a stranger arrives, or a native returns, the narrative relies on the friction between the individual and the collective memory.
Tyler Sinclair returns to Stone Mountain, a rock star. The town he left is now in economic decline and views his success as an economic betrayal and exploitation of their collective history. I went back to some of my favorite books to see how different authors approached these issues in their stories.
1. The Thriller Mechanics vs. Atmospheric Rot
Lake Michigan Resort Town is where January and July by Jeff Abbott takes place. This midwestern town resembles Stone Mountain, but Mr. Abbott uses the geography differently. While Mr. Russo introduces high-tension, plot twists and danger, Mr. Abbott uses his narrative to heighten suspense. The criminal mechanics of January and July conflict with
In January and July by Jeff Abbott, the seasonal contrast of a Midwestern lake town provides a high-tension backdrop for rapid plot twists and active danger. Russo attempts a similar genre shift in Under the Falls by introducing a limousine crash, drug trafficking, and police corruption. However, where Abbott uses environment to heighten suspense,
The resort town's identity, like the people living in it, is not fixed. The dual economy, affluent in the summer, not so bustling otherwise, match the duality of the characters where no one's identity is true for the entire story.
2. Resentment vs. Blue-Collar Solidarity
The Savage, Noble Death of Babs Dionne, a book I enjoyed very much, takes place in the struggling mill town of Waterville, Maine, in a neighborhood called Little Canada. The people of this town confront their hardships with grief and dark humor. Unlike Stone Mountain, the community of Waterville has an enviable, almost mythical solidarity within the community.
Stone Mountain's community is unforgiving and given to the belief that the successful Tyler owes them. The long, simmering grudges come to an explosion which might be the last nail in the town's coffin.
3. Active Crime Trap vs. Existential Isolation
Author Joe Stillman uses the town of Hadley, Arizona in The Man Who Came and Went as a stage for philosophical discussions and introspection. This sunbaked desert town acts as a mirror for its inhabitants when an outsider arrives, allowing for personal reflections, contemplation and introspection. While Stone Mountain's decades of quite resentment come to a boil, the out of town visitor to Hadley strikes a surreal self-analysis among its citizens, instead of explosive retribution.
What is your favorite novel that deals with a protagonist returning to a hometown full of buried secrets and hostility?
After finishing the novel, Mr. Russo wrote that this was supposed to be an unproduced TV pilot, which explains a lot. In fact, while reading the book I thought that it was written with a TV series in mind, something that I can tell every once in a while.
The book blends small-town drama with crime mystery, with themes of past regret set in a familiar setting. It feels underwritten, but a fascinating case study of how the medium shapes the narrative.
Synopsis:
Tyle Sinclair left the town of Stone Mountain when he was 18 years old. With nothing more than a duffle bag, guitar and a dream. Against all odds, Tyler made it big with his band, named after the town, he left.
A reluctant Tyler returns to Stone Mountain to benefit his childhood friend, Doc, who was paralyzed in a tragic accident while they were all teenagers. The one-night fundraiser turns chaotic, a freak accident leaves Tyler in town for longer than he intended.
My rating for Under the Falls - 4
Buy Under the Falls from Amazon.com*
More books by Richard Russo*
Zohar — Man of la Book
Disclaimer: I got this book for free.
*Amazon links point to an affiliate account
