mumblecore v knize, jeden příběh, co skončí dobře i když to tak celou dobu rozhodně nevypadá
začít věřit na dobrý konce je trochu jako vstát z mrtvých

A very human story.
And I say human because in this novel Hawke makes it possible to believe what's happening; it feels real.
Jimmy is an immature 30 year old soldier in the US army who decided to enrol because he didn't know what to do with his life after his father committed suicide. His life is a complete mess; he has no direction, no perspectives, no motivation. Except for Christy.
Christy has had a tough life, estranged from her father, a politician and womaniser who doesn't seem to connect with her needs, she decides to flee at 16 to get married to an alcoholic. She is divorced at 22 and she knows what to expect from life.
But when Christy and Jimmy meet, they can't help their mutual attraction. What seems to be only a sexual relationship becomes something deeper than none of the two could have ever imagined.
They hate each other most of the time, but the love each other more.
Scared of facing responsibility and of his own feelings, Jimmy leaves Christy, who is pregnant without him knowing it.
And that's the starting point of the novel. Christy going back home to Texas, alone and pregnant, and Jimmy, realising he is a piece of "shit" and that he has abandoned what he most treasures, so he decides to leave the army to chase Christy and ask her to marry him.
The chapters move from Jimmy to Christy's point of view; and one of the things I liked most about this novel is the way the characters think and talk about their life, their fears, their beliefs. And how they don't agree most of the time, but somehow that makes them even closer.
This is a story about love, friendship and life, not the kind of sweetened life we find in romantic stories, but the tough life we have to live and endure every day.
Ethan Hawke has proved that, apart from being a brilliant actor, he can also write and make you feel deeply.
Recommended.

mercoledì delle banalità e dei fessi che non crescono mai


Jimmy è un coglione della specie peggiore: quello che cerca la mamma

Christy Ann è la mamma, nel senso che cerca un coglione da adottare

la frittata è fatta e lei è incinta di un fesso che più che marito vorrebbe essergli figlio

la storia va avanti e indietro per un po', quindi non va da nessuna parte e il lettore, che presumibilmente ha superato i 15 anni, si annoia e gli viene voglia di prenderli a sberle, tutti e due...

poi gli viene in mente di rivendersi il libro...e dimenticare questi due fessi che non fanno nulla di cui valga la pena parlare...

A challenging read but one with moments of wisdom and insight. The abundance of flaws among the characters stops short, barely, of portraying them as white trash and keeps the threat of tumult and the end of the relationship perilously close to ending at any given moment. It all seems a little more overwrought and melodramatic than it needs to be. Hawke started with the characters he did and set them on the road they followed. It would be interesting to see if he could have told this story in more subtle ways with the challenges to the relationship more existential without the constant threat of broad self-destruction.

very sincere and committed. quite clear that Hawke infused Jimmy with a great deal of his own meandering philosophical and religious musings, which really is a joy to read. some of the book has aged hilariously bad, but overall, it’s a solid read and quite the story. and of course, love the Thomas Merton shout in the acknowledgments (his influence is all over several characters). would recommend

Surprisingly excellent. Really makes a girl fall in love with Ethan Hawke, quite frankly.

n  The Low -- n

Competing First Person Narration: first person is tricky at the best of times, but going for multiple perspectives ramps up the level of trickiness for even the best authors.  William Faulkner pulled it off in As I lay Dying, but Ethan Hawke is no Faulkner. The specific issue here is that Jimmy and Christy often speak with the same cadence and vocabulary. Maaaayyyyybbbeee some of that can be written off as a result of their relationship, but it doesn't really feel like that, and the result is a fairly regular breaking of the spell Hawke is actually (and almost successfully) weaving.

The Hollywood Ending: I will talk about "truth" in Ash Wednesday again later on, but one of the "truths" that Hawke was heading towards, and an expectation he sets up, falls off the cliff of his day job. Remember when Hawke stood up on a desk and squeaked out "O Captain! My Captain!" to Robin Williams? Well the ending is a little bit like that, and it derails the "true" ending he'd been heading towards. It's a shame because he really missed an opportunity to shine, and what he settled on doesn't have the emotional impact of Dead Poets Society, although who knows, maybe onscreen it would actually work (any plans to shoot this, Mr. Hawke?).

n  The High -- n

Jimmy and Religion: Jimmy, Hawke's male lead, is a Catholic. Not terribly devout, but trying hard to return to the fold, and his desire to enrich himself through religion plays a massive role in his relationship with Christy, who eventually reveals her agnosticism. It is, of course, where Ash Wednesday gets its title, and everything from Jimmy's sketchy remembrance of the rites of his own religion to the messiness his devotion creates with Christy is well handled. Plus, there is an old Massachusetts-Irish priest who I loved, and I wish Hawke would write a short story or two about him. Religion is the strongest thread in Hawke's messy tapestry.

n  The Middling -- n

Emulating Hemingway: as Dr. Jane Drover once told me, "You men will never escape the shadow of Ernest," and that is certainly true of Mr. Hawke. More than once I felt him stretching for that Hemingway "truth," and he approaches it occasionally, but he lacks the discipline of Papa, and he always falls just short. But just short of Hemingway is better than most, so there is something valuable in Hawke's failures. Perhaps if Hawke had better control of his adjectives, like Hemingway did, or had done more with the father-son thread, he'd have snuck a touch closer to the truths he sought, but even so, being overshadowed by Ernest isn't the worst thing here.

Bello aspetto psicologico

ok, non è un capolavoro. e si sente che l'autore viene dal mondo del cinema: cioè, pagina dopo pagina ti sembra di vedere davvero il film tratto dal libro scorrere davanti ai tuoi occhi. insomma, la storia è di quelle che abbiamo sentito raccontare altre volte ma il racconto scorre e funziona benissimo: consigliato, e non solo ai fan dell'ethan hawke che fa l'attore a hollywood.

Still pretty good.

ETA 13/12/2021 - A slow burner in the heart and the memory. I SO MUCH underrated this dark and vicious charmer on first perusal. SO FRIGGIN' MUCH.

27/03/2023 - yet another re-read. the melancholy is just brutal. Glorious genius and compassion for the human condition.

I didn't like either of the main characters and the story line was boring and unoriginal. Ethan should stick to acting.

Well, I read it and felt inclined to TAG Hawke on Instagram, which may reveal my inner dorkiness. Or, it might reveal how this book--surprisingly--evoked a strong and unexpected response.

I read THE HOTTEST STATE a million years ago. It was pretty mediocre.

Tried this . . .

I gotta admit: 5 stars! It's uber-generational, so be forewarned. It's also filled with the angst and religious preoccupations that haunted fans of REALITY BITES. No joke.

He was compared to Salinger by a reviewer that I read, and, um, yeah. Fine by me! Dated? Maybe, but I don't care. Impressive descriptive writing (New Orleans descriptions). Insightful, authentic, underrated!