LIGHTNING RODS

A failed encyclopedia and vacuum-cleaner salesman named Joe hits upon a unique moneymaking scheme. His company, Lightning Rods, Inc., offers a form of corporate prostitution: providing female temp workers who are available to relieve male workers’ sexual urges during the workday. Dushko Petrovich narrates in an unrelieved monotone that reflects Joe’s early depression at his inability to succeed in business, no matter how hard he tries. However, Petrovich’s lackluster performance fails to capture the vicious humor or the spirit of Helen DeWitt’s prose. The novel is artful without artifice, unabashedly blunt in all matters sexual, and scathing in its satirical attack on sexual harassment in the workplace. While LIGHTNING RODS isn’t for all listeners, it deserves a stronger narration. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2012, Portland, Maine [Published: JANUARY 2012]