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Chicago’s promoter’s ordinance: What the city wants, the city gets?
Published on 5/9/08
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Following his father’s shocking death, James, a young American historian, is left with a large glass jar, his dad’s military uniform and a letter written in a language he can’t read. With these clues, he travels to Europe and unravels his mysterious father’s past and his own future.
The chronicle feels both contemporary and extemporaneous. James tells his story in the present tense, while looking back at his younger self with a sense of wonder and astonishment. His attempt to excavate his family history takes him around the globe and unites him with an aunt who he never knew existed. He faces atrocities and regular human failings with the same clear eye, and finally finds hope and comfort. As a historian, James specializes in oral history, skillfully drawing out other characters in the novel to tell their stories, things they wouldn’t tell anyone.
Melnyczuk’s lyrical, lush prose—and harmonious dialogue—lure in the reader, but he’s careful not to let the language become overblown, a feat that can be traced back to Melnyczuk’s career as a poet. As in his previous novels, Widows explores the lives of Ukrainian children in America and the ghosts that haunt their parents—modern dramatic story telling at its finest.
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