GOD OF BEER

When an author records his own work, the result can sometimes be underwhelming. Indeed, the first few minutes of GOD OF BEER, written and read by Garret Keizer, uphold that notion. The delivery starts off as flat and awkward, yet it works. Keizer becomes his adolescent character, Kyle, a high school senior whose civil disobedience experiment to raise awareness of underage drinking in Vermont indirectly leads to the tragic, albeit predictable, death of his longtime love. Kyle gives testimony to how he learned the hard lesson that "life ain't fair," but he tells teens not to ever give up, a message worth hearing. M.M.O. (c) AudioFile 2003, Portland, Maine [Published: APR/MAY 03]