THE AMAZING ADVENTURES OF KAVALIER & CLAY

Confession: I actually assumed that this book, a gift from my girlfriend, wasn't going to be that great because it was written by someone who's still alive! When it comes to fiction, I've had my head in the classics for like 5 years, in part because I've been disappointed with modern fiction so many times. But Michael Chabon's The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier & Clay is incredible.

​I haven't quite finished it, (450/600 page mark) but was sure after the first few chapters I wasn't going to put it down. The story takes place in the late 30's, and follows two teenagers, Sam and Joe, in New York City. Joe, a Jew, has fled eastern Europe by outsmarting the Nazi border guards with the help of his mentor, a magician. United now in NYC, Sam and Joe realize that they share a love for Superman and all things comic books and decide to collab on their own, getting into all sorts of trouble in America's golden age, while Europe's darkening shadow draws closer.

What I love about Kavalier & Clay is that it's a sort of fantastical coming-of-age tale that blends the spirit of the times with the imaginations of the two boys. Sweet, honest, nostalgic, painful, epic — reading Chabon for me has been both refreshing and effortless. You can tell this guy loves the history of comics, the struggles of adolescence, and the minute details of everyday life that make life extraordinary.

Here's one passage that I particularly liked, that gives a sense of Chabon's language and also, in my view, one of the underlying themes throughout the work — the role of fictional heroes in a person's life: 
​

“…Joe learned to view the comic book hero, in his formfitting costume, not as a pulp absurdity, but as a celebration of the lyricism of the naked (albeit tinted) human form in motion. It was not all violence and retribution in the early stories of Kavalier & Clay; Joe’s work also articulated the simple joy of unfettered movement, of the able body, in a way that captured the yearnings not only of his crippled cousin but of an entire generation of weaklings, stumblebums, and playground goats.” ​

Thanks again for the book, Trini. {JG}

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