THE FATHER

by Brett Williams ‧ RELEASE DATE: March 26, 2014

A multigenerational saga that chronicles the lives and hard times of an American family in the past, present and future.

In his debut novel, Williams tracks the Whitakers from their difficult past in the 1920s Midwest to their dystopian future in the 2050s. The story begins in 1926 with the birth of John, son of Joseph, a hardscrabble Iowa farmer. As time goes by, Joseph scratches out a living as he tries to teach and instill independence in his son. John later forsakes his farming roots to work for a manufacturing company, which heartlessly lays him off years later. John’s son, Morgan, digs ditches with brutish co-workers and bosses before going to college and getting work in North Carolina’s Research Triangle Park. He later becomes disillusioned with corporate life and lights out for Hollywood to try his hand at screenwriting. There things go south after a devastating California earthquake, although he does marry the woman of his dreams and beget a son named John. Later, corrupt politics, a rotten economy, spreading disease and other ills turn the United States into a fascist nuthouse. John sojourns in China but returns to America to try to save his compatriots with a stirring speech at the Lincoln Memorial, only to cause a riot. He winds up before a tribunal at the Library of Congress, berated by his cynical father and a bevy of conservatives, liberals and postmodernists, among others; even the Whitakers’ old home turf in Iowa falls into anarchy. Williams accurately describes what he sees as the many glaring defects of modern America, and offers an evenhanded critique of the media, culture wars, and America’s swift destruction of its physical and psychological environments. His prose shows a great deal of learning, and offers acute observations and occasional wit. But sometimes the book’s reach exceeds its grasp; it skims over many episodes, spanning more than a century in just more than 300 pages, leaving gaps in the plot. Thoughts on religion, politics and philosophy, as delivered through dialogue, sometimes sound stilted and preachy (“Hear the absurdities offered today from political manipulators; scientific illiterates; the cream of our university crop muttering their obsessive prattle”).

An earnest, even valiant novel that’s strong on ideas but weighed down by a weak plot and dense dialogue.

Pub Date: March 26, 2014

ISBN: 978-0615849126

Page Count: 326

Publisher: Combustible Books

Review Posted Online: Sept. 5, 2014

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

GENERAL FICTION