Lush Life: A Novel
by Richard Price
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Book Reviews of Lush Life: A Novel
Book Review: Price At His Best and Worst
Summary: 3 Stars
Richard Price is probably my favorite author (yes, it is a difficult distinction for me to make), because of he, more than any other has the ability to capture the raw dialogue of the street, and encapsulate that into a breathing, living conversation available so readily to his reader. His storytelling ability is indisputable, from his novels-turned-movies directed by self-proclaimed autuers like Spike Lee (Clockers) to his wonderful work on probably the most under-rated television show in TV history (the wire).
In Lush Life, Mr. Price extends himself successfully beyond the gritty, urban landscapes he flexibly navigates in Clockers and The Wanderers. By having the Lower East Side as the backdrop, Mr. Price has to create characters beyond his comfort level of the cop-perp relationship that he normally does a masterful job of handling objectively. As a born and raised Brooklynite, Mr. Price's literature is New York City. His grasp for the city and the region is once again flawless in this novel, and better yet, his grasp for such a bizarre neighborhood of circumstance- the lower-east side- is exemplary.
However, Mr. Price, who is so good at not over-romanticizing in his previous novels, tends to be a little idealistic in this novel. At times, Mr. Price is guilty of over-writing and dragging sequences out long enough to make the reader slightly lose interest, and that seems to be the case several times in this book. The plot itself is interesting enough, but Price at times sways too far from his strengths as a crime writer, trying at times to hard to bring human agency to different matters (which he does when he doesn't try), that makes the story at times seem insincere and I hate to say it but at times pompous.
I would still say buy this novel, especially if your a New Yorker. It's not the quickest read ever, but it's worth it. If you haven't read Price before, you will probably love this novel. But if like me, your are a Price enthusiast, finishing the novel is like your a teacher receiving a B paper from your best student.
Book Review: The Price is Right
Summary: 5 Stars
Richard Price is as good of a dialogue writer as exists today in my mind. "Lush Life" is his latest novel that brilliantly showcases his skills and keen knowledge and insights of city life, particularly NYC life.
Other reviewers have already covered the plot so I won't spend my commentary focusing on that. The novels pace is criticized by some reviewers but I view the pace of the novel from a different perspective. The first third of the book moves at lightning speed -- from Ike Marcus's murder through Eric Cash's interrogation. The action and especially dialogue is sharp and crisp with Price in full control. Where other reviewers felt the book slowed at this point, I think Price did a great job capturing the ebb and flow of the investigation that slows to a crawl and this is reflected in the pace of the book.
Ultimately, Price delivers not only great dialogue but great lead characters. One gets immersed in the psyche of Eric Cash, the aspiring actor and restaurant manager who begins to realize his life is not leading where he'd like; Billy Marcus, the grieving father of Ike, shutting out family and friends and trying to cope with extreme loss; Matty Clark, the NYPD detective whose family life is a wreck but committed to his job and work. While we all have seen these character types before, Price makes them feel fresh and new, weaves them and their stories together seamlessly and adds the additional layer of his brilliant dialogue between the characters. Lastly, Price creates a real sense of place -- the Lower East Side of NYC and the rest of the NY metro area come to life. Being from the area, the city comes alive on the pages of "Lush Life".
All in all, this is one of the better books I've read this year and highly recommend investing the time to read "Lush Life".
Book Review: A Symphony In Words!
Summary: 5 Stars
Lush Life, the latest book from Richard Price, is, as the jacket describes, essentially a story of two Lower East Sides in New York City: one a high priced bohemia, the other a home to hardship, its residents pushed to the edges of their time-honored turf. The plot in Lush Life is a simple one: At about four hours into the start of a new day in 2008, three young men mildly acquainted with each other are walking down the street together when a street kid from the "other" Lower East Side stepped up to them and pulled a gun. Within seconds of this encounter, one of the young men is killed and the lives of the other two men are irreparably altered. While this may sound like a mystery that will be filled with suspense and excitement and a variety of twists and turns, be aware that Lush Life has none of these qualities. So, if these qualities are what you want, do not even bother to pick up this book. However, do yourself a large favor and put Lush Life at the top of your reading list when you want to read a book that: (1) is filled with extremely well-developed, complex, real-world characters, and (2) masterfully captures the sounds, sights and smells of the world within New York's two Lower East Sides in such a way that you feel you are right there alongside the victims, the perpetrators and the police detectives investigating the murder as the plot unfolds. Lush Life is not a fast-reading book but it is definitely a book that will "stay with you" for a long time after finishing it. If you've read and enjoyed Price's Clockers or Freedomland or Samaritan, or if you were a fan of the HBO series, The Wire (for which Price was a co-writer), you'll know just what kind of excellent experience you're in store for when you become part of the world Price creates in Lush Life.Book Review: Not easy to set aside
Summary: 5 Stars
When I hear "police procedural", I think "mystery". This book is suspenseful but it is not truly a mystery, at least not in the way we usually mean. The puzzles in this book are those that most readers want in all good books, the ones that keep the pages turning. I wanted to know what the book's characters would say and do. I wanted to know who would come to a bad end and who would fare well. For me, the suspense was in these questions rather than who committed what crime. Besides, there were plenty of culpable people around.
The main characters in the novel are the accused, the detective who lands the case, the father of the slain. There are parallels in each of these, though more easily seen in the detective and the father of the dead son. Each grapples with his failure as a father. The accused deals with a different type of failure. All come across as searching for answers to the meaning of their lives. I cared about each one.
Other characters include a scrappy female detective from the projects; a group of young thugs whose fates do not seem in question; and, the step-mother of the victim. The book is populated with characters who have less stage time but who are essential to the book's complexity. Price finely draws all of them.
I will keep this book as one to study for its dialogue. Dialogue made it a pleasure to read; however, other than this and the book's characters, I liked its subtle mounting dread. A minor flaw was that it felt too long by about 100 pages. Even so, that did not slow me down. I looked forward to picking back up this story about Matty, Eric, and Ike Marcus's father whenever I had to put down the book.
Book Review: Self-Indulgent Sprawl
Summary: 2 Stars
Somewhere between Page 200 and Page 300, this police procedural gussied up in literary pretensions runs off the rails. The first hint that something is wrong, off, sloppy really, comes between Page 120 and Page 130 when the reader is asked to endure the fourth "He tilted his chin at X" formulation. In a 450-page novel, one "He tilted his chin at X" is quite enough, if not one too many, yet we read it twice before Page 120, then twice more in the 120s alone! Another problem: The giant set-piece of the book, centered around a memorial ceremony in which all the characters appear either at centerstage or in the wings or on nearby streets, would require a magician to carry off. Richard Price produces not a rabbit from his hat but a sprawling, preposterous slug. Or to switch metaphors, the juggler is left ball-less. Elsewhere, an editor's red pencil would have been a blessing. There are a number of scenes whose only purpose seems to be to allow Price to give some of his writerly tics a workout. And while the chapters may be long, the type breaks within them are maddeningly many, appropriate for the 10-second attention span but not for lovers of literature. The man cannot seem to sustain. He does have a nice touch with similes and a good ear for dialogue. But is he, as a blurb on the rear jacket of LUSH LIFE maintains, the best American writer of dialogue ever? Not only is he not, but I can think of two writers offhand in the detective genre, not to mention writers of literature, who were better: Ross Macdonald and Raymond Chandler. And when someone else blurbs that you surpass Balzac, don't good manners require that you ask that friend to tone things down a bit before that nonsense gets on the dust jacket?