A Paper Son

Buchholz, Jason. A Paper Son. New York: Tyrus 2016. Print

First Sentences:

It was the day before the storm hit, the storm we'd been watching on newscast Doppler as it approached from Alaska, devouring the coast like a carnivorous planet made of teeth and ice and smoke.

The weatherpersons pointed to it, their expressions mixes of glee and trepidation, their predictions heavy with superlatives, italics, underlining. 

Description:

There is one word that comes to my mind to describe Jason Buchholz's debut novel A Paper Son and that word is "intriguing." It's a plot that cannot be predicted, full of scenes and people that are completely, unexpectedly interesting, mysterious, and slightly quirky. It is the kind of book that one cannot stop reading, becoming completely immersed in the lives and situations portrayed. And then, once we stop reading for whatever reason, the characters and story stay with you like a haunting melody or a puzzle that needs to be examined over and over in order to understand it and wonder how to solve it.

In A Paper Son, Perry Long is an third-grade teacher in San Francisco, happily giving his charges interesting assignments during the day and writing unpublished stories at night. But one day he sees in his cup of tea a vision of a small Chinese family looking off into the distance. Although the vision quickly dissipates, the people in the image capture his interest and he writes a story that night about them and their possible lives on a boat he imagines is taking the family to China.

The story appears in an obscure magazine and leads to a knock on his door from Eva, a elderly Chinese woman. Eva demands to know why Perry has robbed her family's history by telling its story. She then questions him about the fate of one of the figures in Perry's fictional story, settles in to Perry's apartment and vows not to move out until that boy is found and her family's complete story unfolded. It is up to Perry to keep writing their stories to somehow reveal an ending that solves the mystery of Eva's family.

Huh? See what I mean about intriguing?

Perry begins to experience other inexplicable situations and people. While swimming, looking into a puddle, gazing at a distorted figure in a mirror, or listening to Eva comment on the accuracy of each new chapter, he witnesses unusual daily occurrences in his life which no one else notices. For example, he repeatedly hears a mournful Chinese tune and sees a group of quadruplets playing mahjong. 

When the second chapter in "Eva's family story" appears in the same magazine (although no one had submitted it), Perry, completely confused now, sets out to explore what really is happening in his life and the "real" lives of what he knows to be fictional characters of his own creation. 

What is real and what is Perry's own imagination somehow come to life? Is it possible he is writing a story as it really happened to characters that somehow, somewhere, sometime actually were real? Each day presents new visions that challenge his grasp on reality, fiction, and his role in it all.

Absolutely fascinating, extremely well-written, and absorbing plot and characters make this a highly recommended book for anyone willing to jump down a rabbit hole into the "intriguing" world of fiction at its finest. Memorable in every aspect of the world of great writing.

Happy reading. 

Fred

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If this book interests you, be sure to check out:

See, Lisa. China Dolls.   

Three young Chinese women meet at the 1938 San Francisco World's Fair and become friends, if albeit different personalities. The novel follows their lives and relationships in the United States, good and wrenching, as they find their place and personality in the new country. Lovely writing with interesting descriptions of cities and people of that era. (previously reviewed here)