Works From the Bottom Up

There are so very many books out there written by wise old men in their thirties, that look down on me, (from some great height), and graciously, though condescendingly, try to help me understand my life. Well, thanks for nothing. I'll take Darryl Ponicsan, who, at age 82, is just a tad older than me, but by virtue of that is allowed to explain heaven and hell with considerable authority. And he seems to start with real life, really lived, and then works up.

That said, this is not in any way a heavy handed or pretentious book. Quite the opposite. While circling around all sorts of serious issues the author manages everything with a light, irreverent, and even playful touch. We start out Twilight Zone-y, with the author drawing on such collaborators as Byron, Shelley, and Kafka. Once our completely disoriented hero is established, we just let him wander around that little slice of heaven, Margate. (Great city name. There's a comfy, beachy, touristy "Margate" in almost every state in the U.S. and every English speaking country in the world. Which I guess is part of the point.)

As we wander about, the incidents become weirder and weirder, the characters we meet get odder and odder, and the absurd and surreal touches keep piling up. There's really no point in trying to further summarize the plot or put a fine point on the author's intentions. It might be best to simply to note that the hero's interrogation by two local police officers , toward the beginning of the book, about the shooting of an angel, is a classic of timing, misdirection, word play, cross talk, and deadpan humor that, all by itself, makes this book worth finding.

It appears that Ponicsan had fun with this. I had fun with it. I suspect you would have fun with it.

(Please note that I received a free ecopy of this book without a review requirement, or any influence regarding review content should I choose to post a review. Apart from that I have no connection at all to either the author or the publisher of this book.)

An entertaining paranormal story set in a small town. It includes interesting characters, an fun plot, and some humor. Recommended.

I really appreciate the advanced copy for review!!

Eternal Sojourners by Darryl Ponicsan held my interest until the very end when I finally discovered the meaning of the title. The characters were well drawn but the plot seemed to wind endlessly around the little piece of heaven town, Maragate. That was the point. An eternal journey towards self realization and acceptance. As I read this book, I was sometimes confused and frustrated by Dr. Kecskemeti's incredible story, but would recommend it to those interested in the supernatural.