Closer to a 3.5. This book - as a kind of “WW2 fiction” - pleasantly surprised me. It follows a soldier suffering from PTSD in postwar Los Angeles.
It is told mostly as a kind of poetry, with a mix of narrative and lyrical sections. There were few beautiful lines in here, and the photographs included really added to the vibe and mood of this book - they, including the cover, are so aesthetically pleasing. However, many sections of this felt kind of pointless, with endless descriptions of place or street names that meant nothing to me.
The themes covered in this were the winner for me: gentrification, poverty, urbanisation, modernity etc. I personally liked such a cynical look at America - LA in particular - and the death of the postwar promise. I was less interested in the war flashbacks but i think they were done really well and provided a great point of comparison for gentrification and the protagonist’s present.
Part of the issue i had with this book was the disconnect. The emotional distance really suited this book, but the disconnect from what was actually happening sometimes left me feeling a little lost - especially when there wasn’t any lyrical writing, thoughts or introspection to make up for it - certain sections throughout felt literally pointless.
Overall, this is a very smart/literary type book; and i loved the discourse and writing style.