Much like "Winter Town", another book of Mr. Emond's which I read four years back, I was kind of so-so on this. There are two storylines. One is a love story between Walter Wilcox and his best friend's sister, Naomi. The other is the tale of Walter's father, a struggling divorcee cop who is accused of racial profiling. The love story feels real. Walter's inner voice is compelling and powerful. The cop story feels more like something the author read about and it comes off didactic and moralistic. As with his other book, this is clearly drawing from the author's own life. The screaming dissonance of teens buying music CDs, Facebook use and "Instant Messaging" distracts in a tale supposedly set in the modern age. The story is equally messy with threads which don't go anywhere. Dad has an emotional bounce when he begins a friendship with a nice neighbor lady but it doesn't develop. Walter's sister drifts in and out of the narrative but doesn't seem to have a purpose. Unlike "Winter Town" the drawings don't really add to the story. While they contribute a sense of darkness they sometimes clash with the narrative. A picture of the high school party looks like a kid's birthday celebration, the set of the hospital looks like an elegant hotel lobby. The characters in the artwork are mostly faceless leaving only a sense of despair and loneliness, which is odd for a love story. In any case, it ain't bad but it ain't great. Fans of angst will continue to enjoy the work of Stephen Emond but I'm ready to move on.
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