Coney

Being a born-n-raised Californian, I have no memories and preconceptions of Coney Island, so my experience may differ from a New Yorker or New Jersey resident's idea of Coney. I found this book to be very interesting, keeping be engaged through all 320 pages. Ducovny's characters are al slightly off center and keep you wondering what will happen next. The sadness of a young man who finds he is stradling between a boy who races steam ships on his bicycle and a young man who is figuring out his sexuality and own identity. many of the characters are people you would not want to know , but all have compelling lives. I was not expecting the amount of sexuality in the book. I wasn't offended by the amount or type of sexual scenarios, but I found that the characters seemed to lack any real passion, abhorance or lasting interest in the sexual situations, which struck me as odd. All in all I give it a 4-star rating for its sad stroy, unusual cast of characters and gutsy ending.

The characters that inhabit Ducovny's CONEY grab your attention and don't let go. They're the winter residents of Coney Island in 1939 and range from Jewish immigrants to sideshow freaks to gangsters and even wild dogs. Seen mostly through the eyes of teenager Harry, the events of CONEY parallel impending horrors in Europe as the strong in Coney Island plan to prey upon the weak. In spite of such bleakness, the best moments in the novel to me are conversations between Harry and an elderly Jewish man that through understated humor attempt to describe an insane world. By the time I was halfway through the book, I couldn't put it down.PS I first noticed the book because I liked the cover. The exception to the rule, I presume.