The Grand March
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- $28.99
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- $28.99
Publisher Description
When young Russell Pinske feels life is passing him by, he hits the road to shake things up. He catches a ride as far as his hometown in Indiana to visit friends and find a way to the West Coast. While there he stumbles through the summer on his wayward journey of self-discovery, bouncing from one impetuous impulse to another, becoming involved in the misbegotten capers of a gang of petty crooks and falling into a romance with an older woman. His motivation for his trip begins to wane as he gets mired in small-town life and wrapped up in the problems and preoccupations of the people around him. So when an old friend cruises into town under mysterious circumstances and offers a ride to California, Russell sees a chance to get back on the road and back on track, if he can extricate himself from his entanglements.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Turner's debut is a road novel that stalls in first gear. In the aftermath of a failed romance, Russell Pinske restlessly decides to head to California. He does so by first heading to his hometown of Door Prairie, Ind., to look up old acquaintances. What follows, and fills the novel, are the stories and relationships of Russell and assorted friends, among them a couple of smalltown dope dealers. Every character has a story or three; problem is, none is terribly interesting, and nothing much happens. It's low-key time in slackerville. Turner is ambitious; this is described as the first in a projected series of four books about "errant souls," and the road novel is an honored form for social observation. But his characters are one-dimensional, and his writing suffers from a few too many adjectives and adverbs ("Guy exclaimed in a harsh whisper"; "dreary light oozed through yellowed shades").
