Dreamers Ascending (HC) (2020) (Large Print)

Drawing on the European Romantics, the wit of writers like Will Rogers and O. Henry, and the philosophy of Isaiah Berlin and Albert Murray, among others, Dreamers Ascending is destined to be controversial precisely because it is, as one reviewer put it, "contrarian," but only in the sense that living an American life full of hope and joy is contrary to the existing narrative. Dreamers Ascending is a poetic paen to men who lived their fullest lives in the 20th century. This is an important book, especially now; a complex, innovative story that commands attention. This is a majestic novel, a Great American Novel, full of big questions and big answers: a philosophical examination of why we do what we do, and the people and events that influence our thoughts and actions; a novel of characters seeking to achieve their sanity and then retain it while seeking true love, and indulging their passions in the glow of their intelligence, egos, and accomplishments, simply getting on with it.

There is much truth in this historical, magical realist thriller, this emotional, old-fashioned, biographical anthology of love stories, for nothing is as it seems. It may seem like a lot to take in, yet the pace is studied, leisurely, before it pulls you into a strange world inhabited by people you perhaps never dreamed existed; they appear to be genuine, the most authentic of people. You may question their thoughts and actions as they make you question who and what you value in this holding cell we call life. If you're old enough (it takes place between the years 1936 and 2002) it asks, without asking, 'Where were you? Were you present?' If not, if you have not yet been haunted by the ghouls of forgotten memories, this story may be of assistance as you move away from the furry warmth of youth.