Good Stories by the Right Type… Writer

Tom Hanks wrote a book. Yeah… that Tom Hanks. You know, the Academy Award-winner who is the closest to taking on that “everyman” actor mantle since the departure of Jimmy Stewart? And his book, Uncommon Type, is really quite fun.

Uncommon Type is a collection of 17 short stories. Like any anthology, the stories presented within are a mixed bag depending, of course, on the reader’s taste, station of life, and adventures that being on the road will take said reader to the place in time when this book is actually read. Some within are very good. So good, in fact, you don’t want them to end; you crave for the full novel. Some are charming enough to be enjoyable, but also be charmingly forgettable. Four of them, and thank Tom there are only four, are mortally terrible.

Of the very good, Hanks presents the following: Three Exhausting Weeks presents the fun tale of four friends, two of which decide to experiment with the old friends-with-benefits idea. Christmas Eve 1953 tells of a WWII vet who recounts his time overseas ten years back. A Month on Greene Street has a divorced mother encountering her possibly-flirtatious neighbor all set on a mythical suburban street in August. And These Are the Meditations of My Heart is a love letter to the typewriter, which is a theme Hanks carries throughout the entire novel as typewriters of all kinds make an appearance in each of his stories.

The very bad all involve a cranky writer named Hank Fiset who complains about technology and New York and coffee and wishes life could remain stuck in the 1960s American Midwest, which actually sounds like hell to me. And those stories are as close to that infernal realm as I chose to presently get. They are also mercifully short.

Full disclosure here. I listened to the audiobook, because I can listen to Tom Hanks speak for much longer than the ten hours spent enjoying this book. And for an auditory treat, Hanks, he’s an actor remember, adds certain flair to some of the stories. In Go See Costas, for instance, Hanks recounts the story of a Bulgarian-by-way-of-Greece immigrant coming to New York. Hanks plays up a mild accent for the role, which is a nice touch to a nice story that reminds readers that, oh yeah, America is still one great big melting pot, regardless of what “Those-In-Office” may otherwise think. He concludes with a radio-style play, complete with an appearance from bosom buddy Peter Scolari, that is painfully campy, but solid in heart.

Hanks knows how to craft a story; the man can tell a tale. And most of the stories within follow his everyman, and every-woman in a number of instances, ideals. Some of the stories let you get lost in the world he creates, while others are as uncommon as they are short, which is the ideal premise of what a collection of short stories should be all about. After all, didn’t Hanks once play a character that compared life’s choices to a box of… I dunno… something that comes in boxes… anvils? Right?


As Always,
theJOE

Beholden American Dreamers

Behold The Dreamers is an entertaining read, easy and fast-paced, light on plot. After all, this is a story that has been told many times before. The catch with Imbolo Mbue’s debut novel, however, is the contemporary setting of the story -  America’s financial crisis of 2008/2009 . In doing so, the author brilliantly dramatizes an immigrant’s view of an ideal America, an America worth fighting to become part of,  during a period of darkness in the early 21^st Century when many Americas were incredibly disillusioned.

The story is told through the views and eyes of Jende and Neni, a couple from Cameroon to whom America can do no wrong, even in modern-day New York City, roaches and all, with a future so bright they gotta wear shades. Jende is a chauffeur for a Wall Street player; Neni a young mother studying to be a pharmacist.  Neither is completely innocent and both strive and fight, worry and stress, love and listen, in order to obtain that holiest of grails, American citizenship.

Then the crash happens. The Wall Street balloon pops. And so do the couple’s dreams. What else is an immigrant to do but continue to fight? Which they do. Sometimes against the system. Sometimes against each other. Sometimes against their own dreams.

Mbue creates a set of enjoyable, relatable characters but their simplistic, and perhaps idealistic nature, does not fully complete the characters. At times the dialogue as well can be predictable and basic. However, Mbue does successfully install an affirming spirit within the two. They are happy, positive, and continue to dream. Something all Americans, regardless of our origins, need to remember.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Random House for the advance copy, and the enjoyable read.

As Always,

theJOE