March 2, 2022
The Lincoln Highway by Amor Towles
In June 1954, 18 year old Emmett Watson returns to his family home after serving a prison term at a juvenile work farm for involuntary manslaughter. His plan is to pick up his younger brother and then head for California to start a new life, and possibly find their mother who left them years ago. Their plan is to drive the Lincoln Highway. But two convicts from the work have followed him home and they have plans of their own.
I loved the author's two previous books, so nobody was more surprised than me that I didn't love this one. Emmett wasn't the protagonist or even the main character, and they don't travel on the Lincoln Highway. There's a road trip but it goes toward the east coast. There are a lot of silly antics by silly side characters. The plot (if you can call it a plot) is silly, too. The whole tone of the book was off somehow - even when there is a scene that involves a beating or murder, there is a clownish tone. I just didn't connect with any of the characters or the story. Although it got a lot of positive reviews, I'd give it a miss.
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