Before the Fall by Noah Hawley
My rating: 5 of 5 stars
This is a very special book. The author does 11 or 12 very fine character studies, weaving 2-3 plot lines into the story of ordinary people living their lives. Well, maybe some not so ordinary, like the two billionaires and the psychotic co-pilot.
But it’s the ordinary folks who turn out to be most interesting. Here’s a thought from one of the mothers: “Mothers exist to blunt the existence of loneliness of being a person. If that were true then her biggest maternal responsibility was simply companionship. You bring a child into this fractious chaotic world out of the heat of your womb and then spend the next 10 years working beside them while they figure out how to be a person.”
One plot revolves around the crash investigation: A mystery on par with the best cliff-hangers. The other follows the life of the main character, an unmarried forty-something painter. You drop into his life at a pivotal time for him and jump right into the angst thanks to Hawley’s excellent writing.
Definitely, read this book.
Ann Heitland 