Devoted

Hometown Story

I was attracted to this novel because it takes place in my home town, Saratoga, CA. It quickly reminded me of one of my favorite reads, A Confederacy Of Dunces. The protagonist, Nick Staylor, is every bit as self-absorbed and quirky as Ignatius J. Reilly, and sporadically, just as riotous. While Ignatius spars with his mother, Nick fends off the unwelcome intrusion of his grandmother’s voice, a constant companion since he was a child.

The struggle has caused Nick to narrow his life down to the essentials; an unfulfilling job, fast food, Jolt cola, a kitchen full of books, and his beloved historical miniatures. Nick, however, ‘looks good on paper’ to Karen, and she presses for marriage. His petty treatment of her eight-year-old son dooms this prospect early on, and forces his return to the town of his past, and the accompanying memories.

His teenaged neighbor, Carla, has plans for her life, and drafts the misanthropic Nick as an adjunct to her success, precipitating a one-sided love, angry neighbors, a road trip, and revelations aplenty. You may think the sleepy suburb of Silicon Valley a mundane setting for the unusual relationship story, but it turns out to have all the right elements for Nick’s musings. No New Orleans patois here, but the local haunts (some no longer there) enrich the whip sharp dialog between the misfit and his affluent neighbors, and make the long read worthwhile.