North River: A Novel
by Pete Hamill
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Book Summary Information
Author: Pete HamillEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2008-06-04
ISBN: 0316007994
Number of pages: 368
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Book Reviews of North River: A Novel
Book Review: "Forever's" Missing Pieces Found in "North River"
Summary: 5 Stars
In his followup to "Forever", a sprawling "magical history" of New York City, journalist/novelist Pete Hamill streamlines both scope and genre to produce "North River", a family story set in Depression-era New York. Dr. James Delaney, a general practitioner serving mostly indigent clients during a time where no one has money, unexpectedly takes on the new challenge of single fatherhood when his daughter Grace leaves his toddler grandson Carlito on the doorstep on the way to a worldwide search for her revolutionary husband. Delaney's efforts to raise his young charge, care for his patients, and negotiate his way among the mobster scene (he treats WW I war buddy and mob boss Eddie Corso in the opening scene) carry the story until immigrant housekeeper and child caretaker Rosa joins the household. Unlike "Forever", the story here is compact enough that to reveal more would be a spoiler.
Hamill also softens the punchy journalistic style he displayed in "Forever", achieving a much more lyrical feel to what is a human story rather than a vehicle to recount history. Still, I enjoyed that Hamill set this story in the 20th century, the one period he bypassed in "Forever", which otherwise spanned more than 250 years. Readers who balked at the suspension of disbelief (i.e. that a man could live forever if he held to a shaman's orders) required to accept "Forever", will appreciate the simple story that Hamill tells here.
My whole family - myself, my wife, my father and mother - read and enjoyed "North River". Sit by a fire for a few hours this winter and enjoy it yourself. Five stars.
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