October 4, 2008

The Wishbones: A Novel (1997)

This novel follows another bunch of relatively unsuccessful musicians. These are losers of the Rob Fleming variety - unromantic failures living in suburban New Jersey, in their mid-30s but still staying with their parents, trudging through crap jobs, with only their wedding band providing them with any pleasure in their lives. Also like Rob, they seem to be stuck in perpetual inertia about moving forward in their lives, whether that means getting married, finding a job with with consistent hours, or at least not driving while slogging down cheap beer. The main character, Dave, stumbles through the narrative thinking about, but not actually making decisions. Rather, he seems to content to let life happen to him. As a result, his life kind of sucks. It's a quick reminder how the rock n' roll lifestyle that seems carefree and glamorous when you're young, seems sort of pathetic once you no longer are.

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