For the boomer generation, the late sixties hold a special
place in many hearts. It was a time of growth. A time of
experimentation. A time of protest. A time of
demonstrations. A time of revolution.
And for Chris Carver, it was a time that he has spent the
rest of his life trying to get away from. A time that has
finally caught up to him.
MY REVOLUTIONS tells three stories. In the present, Chris
Carver's assumed identity as Michael Frame, suburban husband
and father, is starting to crumble. He flees before the
walls come crashing in, hoping to find a lost love. As he
flees, he recalls in flashbacks his youth as a late sixties
protester and political activist. He also recalls the
events of the past few months as his past catches up to him.
All three threads approach their respective climaxes near
the end of the book, when all comes together and Chris
begins to find some sort of resolution.
Kunzru weaves all three threads of his story together with
great skill, using the flashbacks to wend his way through
the consciousness of his narrator. He effectively conveys
the ardor, passion and idealism of Carver's activist youth
without parody or cliche. He also conveys how that passion
leads Carver onto a dark path that ends in a disillusion
that lasts for decades.
MY REVOLUTIONS is not a happy book, but it is extremely
good, and well worth the read. If you want to know what the
Spirit of 1968 was about, this is a great place to learn.
“Powerful” (The New Yorker), “extraordinary”
(The New York Times Book Review), and “brilliant”
(Entertainment Weekly)—you won’t be able to put down
this new novel by the award-winning bestselling author of
The Impressionist
Critics have compared
him to Martin Amis, Zadie Smith, Tom Wolfe, and Don DeLillo.
Granta dubbed him “one of the twenty best fiction
writers under forty.” Now Hari Kunzru delivers his best
novel yet.
Chris Carver is living a lie. His wife,
their teenage daughter, and everyone in their circle know
him as Michael Frame, suburban dad. They have no idea that
as a radical student during the sixties he briefly became a
terrorist— protesting the Vietnam War by setting off bombs.
Until one day a ghost from his past turns up on his
doorstep, forcing Chris on the run.
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