Another Bullshit Night in Suck City: A Memoir
Nick Flynn’s memoir centers largely around his relationship with his absentee father Jonathan. Jonathan is an alcoholic and ex-con who is homeless; Flynn crosses paths with his father when he goes to work in Boston’s Pine Street shelter. Flynn is unsure what to make of their relationship, which weaves in and out during the course of the book as he turns to alcohol and drugs himself and comes close to meeting the same fate as his father as he tries to escape his own pain. His father continually speaks of his own writing talent and the book that he plans to write, but it is Flynn who produces the memorable work that offers a smorgasbord of styles.
The memoir skips around somewhat, citing dates to guide the reader as to the chronology of events that take place. The book begins in 1989 and then jumps back to 1956 before it jumps forward to 1984, so the reader is left to piece together the puzzle. By doing so, however, Flynn is able to give necessary background information that makes the memoir in the present comprehensible. He tells of how his parents came to know one another, how his mother came to state that it was better that he never know his father and how his paternal grandfather died without his father attending his funeral in many such flashback chapters.
At times, the book breaks into some very innovative modes. One chapter, “Same Again,” is four pages of expressions describing drunkenness. Another chapter, “Santa Lear,” contains a play involving three daughters, one businessman and five Santas outside an urban donut shop during the Christmas season. Flynn ends the book with questions he has been asked and some answers he has proposed to them. All make for very entertaining reading.
The book deals with depressing subjects; it is hardly a cheery story. Flynn has broken it into short chapters, however, which makes it easier to digest. The language of the book is sharp, terse and evocative, and the writing is vivid and well written. Flynn deals with the subject of homelessness in a very matter-of-fact manner as an outsider who has dealt with the homeless closely rather than as a person who was homeless himself. For the reader who wants a good, thoughtful introduction into the world of homelessness, Another Bullshit Night in Suck City is highly recommended reading.
The memoir skips around somewhat, citing dates to guide the reader as to the chronology of events that take place. The book begins in 1989 and then jumps back to 1956 before it jumps forward to 1984, so the reader is left to piece together the puzzle. By doing so, however, Flynn is able to give necessary background information that makes the memoir in the present comprehensible. He tells of how his parents came to know one another, how his mother came to state that it was better that he never know his father and how his paternal grandfather died without his father attending his funeral in many such flashback chapters.
At times, the book breaks into some very innovative modes. One chapter, “Same Again,” is four pages of expressions describing drunkenness. Another chapter, “Santa Lear,” contains a play involving three daughters, one businessman and five Santas outside an urban donut shop during the Christmas season. Flynn ends the book with questions he has been asked and some answers he has proposed to them. All make for very entertaining reading.
The book deals with depressing subjects; it is hardly a cheery story. Flynn has broken it into short chapters, however, which makes it easier to digest. The language of the book is sharp, terse and evocative, and the writing is vivid and well written. Flynn deals with the subject of homelessness in a very matter-of-fact manner as an outsider who has dealt with the homeless closely rather than as a person who was homeless himself. For the reader who wants a good, thoughtful introduction into the world of homelessness, Another Bullshit Night in Suck City is highly recommended reading.
posted by MasterWriter at 12:49 p.m.
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