The Portable Veblen by Elizabeth McKenzie, 430 pagesDr. Paul Vreeland grew up on a commune that was constantly being raided by a neverending cycle of hippie friends of his parents and DEA agents. Yet he's now an upwardly-mobile neurologist with a new device in testing phases at a VA hospital. His fiancee, Veblen, is a temp in a doctor's office, voluntarily translates texts into Norwegian, and has a deep knowledge of the economist Thorstein Veblen, who inspired her name. If the two can sort through their family issues, as well as their vastly differing opinions on squirrels, they're getting married in the spring. And, at times in this book, that seems like an awfully big "if."
This book is hilarious in the weirdest ways. Veblen's long conversations with a squirrel, their experiences meeting each other's families, heck, even some of Paul's interactions in the VA hospital... they're all just so awkward and weird and fantastic. I particularly love McKenzie's goofy descriptions: she describes the diamond on Veblen's engagement ring as "a diamond so large it would be a pill to avoid for those who easily gag." It's tough to hit the right balance between weird and overbearing when it comes to family dysfunction, and McKenzie hits the sweet spot. Well worth a read, particularly if you like squirrels.
No comments:
Post a Comment