Whatever Happened to Gloomy Gus of the Chicago Bears?

On Memorial Day 1937, at a union protest in Chicago, Gloomy Gus, an all-American gridiron hero, took his last catch and dash to the great touchline in the sky. How he came to be there and what his life represents is the subject of this story. Gus is the fulfillment of the American Dream. He was a very successful student at school. He is prodigious in bed with women. He is a talented actor, able to truly move the audience. But Gus is also an enigma. What is the mystery at the heart of his life? The story is narrated by Meyer, who knew Gus in his final days. Meyer is a Jew and a committed Communist. He works as a WPA sponsored sculptor, and he lives in his studio, which is in an old warehouse. The warehouse is rumored to have once been used as a liquor depot by Bugs Morgan's gang. The warehouse is in the Old Town district, and though Meyer has abandoned his Jewish heritage, he is surrounded by Jewish people. This is also the story of Meyer, who searches for the meanings in life so he can express them in his art. We should try to do our very best! We should be as successful as possible! We should be admired by our contemporaries! We all know these catch cries, but what truly lies at the heart of the American Dream? This book is subversive and at times uproariously funny. I found myself laughing out loud on quite a few occasions, and this is certainly an achievement as I have no sense of humor. This is a philosophical book without in any way being a heavy academic tome. It is short even for a novel. It is very readable. But it beguilingly tempts the reader to think. Gus certainly stands out as a memorable character and Meyer is skillfully drawn in such a way that he too lives. The style of writing is inner-monologue and this too is handled with skill. Meyer of course does not have all the answers and we are left to ponder the enigma of Gus on our own. The book takes two or three chapters to get going but once it does I think you will find it, as I did, very entertaining. For its humor and for its spurring me to think I am happy to award this book five stars.