BROOKLYN CRIME NOVEL

Hold onto your earphones as narrator Geoffrey Cantor skillfully zooms into and out of the lives of Brooklynites from the 1970s to the 1990s. Some crime novels are character driven; others are plot driven. Lethem's latest work seems sociologically driven. Characters are designated by labels like "white boys" rather than names, unveiling clashing cultures, all struggling to thrive in the city. Cantor adeptly voices an Italian gang's toughness and a Jamaican mother's wisdom. Interspersed throughout, Cantor adopts a confidential tone as he voices the author, who directs listeners' focus to important details and occasionally comments on the writing. This dizzying listening experience illuminates the challenges of life in the city--where external and internal barriers test the mettle of its diverse inhabitants. E.Q. © AudioFile 2023, Portland, Maine [Published: AUGUST 2023]