Desperado City

Don't be fooled by the cover - this is not a mystery! Rebecca Coleman's first book, "Desperado City," is a beautifully crafted literary novel examining the lives of a group of teenagers. It is the summer after their high school graduation and most of their time is spent working at the western theme park, Desperado City. The writing sparkles: Coleman's ear for dialogue is pitch-perfect and her scenes are original, funny, heart-breaking. The characters are vibrant and fully realized; they range from the innocent Lativian girl Irina, working in the theme-park gift shop to the enigmatic Avery, whose presence at Desperado City might be the most mysterious element of the book. This is not a bad thing; Avery is quite compelling and though he doesn't have a chapter of his own until the end, he enlivens every scene he is in. Coleman manages to pull off a fine juggling act. The cast of characters is large, and the problems and challenges they face many, but she handles their stories with grace and candor, making this both a thoughtful and thought-provoking read.

Desperado City is not a mystery. It is a brilliantly crafted novel about a group of teenagers working at a decrepit Wild West theme park in the Catskills. As they struggle to define themselves and find their paths forward, they face universal challenges: overbearing family members, competitive co-workers, low self-esteem, uncertainty about the future. There is a sinister edge to the story. A young girl's body is found, wrists slit, on a bed in the crumbling Haunted House. The park owner's outcast son returns to prowl the decaying premises of Desperado City. He lurks at the edge of the action, watching over former friends and family like a demented guardian angel. And the clean-cut leader of the Raiders for Christ cheerfully pursues converts by day and much less ethical undertakings by night. Coleman's writing is finely nuanced, spare and evocative. She takes you inside the skins of her youthful characters; you experience their desperation and their euphoria. What at first seems a breezy coming of age story plumbs unusual depths. It's a superb read.

The teens know this is the last time they will work at the Catskills theme park DESPERADO CITY as they have just graduated from high school. Though shook up, none seem particularly interested in the death of a younger teenager in the "Haunted Hotel". Danielle prefers snowboarding and gossip with her BFF Sophie's who is stringing males who want her against one another. Sophie's brother, Nick may be a born again religious fanatic, but also is a lady's man as he interprets the bible literally when it comes to females. On the other hand nerdy Adam wants Sophie, but she uses him as jealousy bait to hook the fireman Joey. The owner's son Toby fears he will inherit DESPERADO CITY. Somewhat a whodunit that is resolved early, DESPERADO CITY is more a teen character study with so much self-torment and tsuris that the amount of runaway hormones on the loose is over the top of the Catskills. The cast is strong as individuals, but as an ensemble can be overwhelming; sort of like having too much sugar. Still this is an interesting look at teenage brooding and anxiety amplified by a homicide. Harriet Klausner

Readers old enough to remember may find a book that comes across much like a written work similar to the cinematic story told in the film "American Graffiti" -- sexual angst sparking against hormonally driven emotions. But "Desperado City's" morality play features a cast who might be drawn from the offspring of the pre-Graffiti sexual revolution rather than those who spent their youth coveting chrome tail fins and poodle skirts. In fact, it seems that the characters populating "Desperado City" who have not already confused sex for love are desperate to do so. "Desperado City" is a serious work, one that a parent might read and pass along to a youngster hoping to offer an example that life can be hard, that the people you meet along the way and call "friend" can hurt you, and that it is best to seek love that gives rather than takes.