"How much do you know about the Bronx?"
"My mother's family grew up here--but they left half a century ago."
"Well, now it is completely different."
I looked around. I saw immigrants. Completely different? Perhaps the borough had not changed so much after all. Even in In New York, some things hold true, which is what makes Forever such a great read.
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| The sun rises in the east between two five-story walk-ups in New York City. |
Pete Hamill pulls no punches. He tells it straight from the gut. A paradox of straight up, blunt, Brooklyn-Irish straight talk and the the seemingly contradictorily artful elegance therein.
Here's the premise: Cormac O'Connor finds himself in lower Manhattan in 1741. Like most Irishman, he is not there by choice. Shortly after arriving, he is granted everlasting life. One condition: Cormac can never leave Manhattan island. To say anything else would be like explaining Midnight in Paris to someone who hasn't watched it.
I will say this, though: There is Triumph, and there is Tragedy, Magic and Mystery, Love and Loss. It is also striking how many passages in the books final chapters are dated--a window into an archaic past. No smartphones, no broadband. Nearly 400 years of human history centered around New York City, and just a decade has brought transformative change to human behavior.
And yet, the story is timeless still. Hamill has been around the block more than a few occasions, and is more than willing to ever so artfully impart the wisdom he has accrued on a thoughtful and intuitive reader. In my case, I picked up because I liked the author and had recently moved into the city. And in an almost cosmic way, I feel a stronger sense of belonging in my community. I suspect this is feeling transcends a mere city, and no matter where one lives, one can feel the same way after experiencing Forever.
And like many good books, it gets better each time you read it. Hence, it will be on my list of books to read forever. Sorry, couldn't help it!
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