In Pursuit of a Vanishing Star

This short novel is a gem -- large in scope if not in words. A script writer is dying of cancer. His double, a producer and second husband of the writer's ex-wife, offers him a project -- a gift to keep his mind on things other than dying. The book narrates the film script he is writing - a film on Greta Garbo centered on the event that turned her from another good actress to the film goddess. As he researches and writes the script, the writer comes to terms with his own elusive (illusive) love for a half-sister, to terms with living as a passive canvas versus living with self-understanding.The book is exquisite - well researched and perceptive of people and their idols, the effect of time on changing idols. If you read for action, this is probably not to your liking. If you read to expand your understanding of humanity, this belongs on your "must read" list.