Brooklyn Crime Novel - Jonathan Lethem

 Brooklyn Crime Novel - Jonathan Lethem

Publication Date: October 3, 2023

She read

Through a series of interrelated vignettes, this takes the reader back to 1970s Brooklyn and the beginning of its gentrification.  Focusing primarily on the young boys from the Dean Street neighborhood, it introduces the mixed cultures and ethnicities, their interconnections and the territories at a time when mostly petty crime was prevalent.   It follows some of the characters into more contemporary times, charting their lives as well as the displacement of the displacers in the neighborhood.  

I loved the momentous, not so momentous, and infamous history that was interspersed in the story telling, along with the iconic events/objects from the 70s.  Coming from the perspective of being a New Yorker at heart and someone who actually remembers the 70s, I do wonder if others might be lost by some of the references and want to “Google”  them.  

The writing is a bit different from a typical narrative; it might be off putting to some.  For those willing to tackle something with an atypical structure, it will be a satisfying read.

 

Thanks to #netgalley and @eccobooks for the ARC.

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