Northline, Willy Vlautin
Note: This book comes with a CD of music Vlautin wrote to accompany the novel. The music is great. The book is not.
In short: From the author of The Motel Life we get another novel about people whose lives really suck. This one, however, is decidedly less interesting than Vlautin’s first novel, largely because he doesn’t seem to understand his (female) protagonist at all. She makes incomprehensible choices, and Vlautin doesn’t even try to make them seem plausible, even in the context of the story. This book is also far too short—enough happens in the story to fill at least another hundred pages—which makes the entire thing feel rushed and, frankly, a little lazy.
Read it if you like: The Motel Life, Nickel and Dimed, being depressed
Don’t take my word for it:Â Karin Elizabeth, Minnesota Reads, Nevada Sagebrush