Auster (
Winter Journal) is a good reader and a great writer. Unfortunately, though well narrated, this work does not display Auster's typical quality. His early years as a schoolboy baseball player and Yankees fan are quite entertaining. Also, his extended takes on the films
The Incredible Shrinking Man and
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang as formative experiences in his youth are very interesting. Less so is the final portion of the book, a second-person dialog with his adolescent self, based on selections from love letters written in the 1970s to Lydia Davis, who became his first wife. Apart from his commentary on his Columbia University education and his participation in anti-Vietnam War protests, it's pretty boring.
VERDICT This audio presentation is recommended to libraries with extensive literary audio collections and of course to fans of the author. ["Auster presents a fascinating take on the memoir," read the starred review of the Holt hc, LJ 10/15/13.]
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