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Shawn Vestal

Autor von Daredevils

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A long-time columnist and reporter in Spokane, Washington, Shawn Vestal has (mostly, over the last few years) begun to make a name for himself as an author of fiction, first with his Pen Bingham Prize winner, the story collection Godforsaken Idaho, now with his debut novel, the Mormon coming-of-age/road novel (words I thought could never possibly go together), Daredevils.

The focal point of Vestal’s story is Loretta, a rebellious teenager from a fundamentalist Mormon family. As a proposed curative for her bad behavior, Loretta is married off as second sister-wife to fellow fundamentalist, Dean Harder (a name worthy, indeed, of masters like Hawthorne and Dickens).

Soon, Dean moves his entire clan, including Loretta, to his family’s land in Idaho, far from her parents’ home. Once in Idaho, Loretta finds common ground with Dean’s teen nephew Jason; that common ground being escape from the oppression of family and religion, escape to an outside world that may seem freer than it is.

Daredevils is a trip through time and space, a portrait of a mid-century America (the 1950’s through the 1970’s) that’s breathtaking in scope. But perhaps the most winning part of the book is the way this lost history comes to feel at once familiar and deeply engrossing. From Tolkien to Zeppelin to narration from Jason’s hero, Evel Knievel, pop culture references abound, presenting a counterpoint to the constrictive fundamentalism at the story’s core. This is the good and bad of our American mythology—even more so that of the American West—a land where freedom and madness seem so often to run hand in hand.

http://www.thenervousbreakdown.com/kbaumeister/2016/07/the-nervous-breakdowns-re...
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kurtbaumeister | 3 weitere Rezensionen | Oct 25, 2017 |
Having lived in Idaho for 3 and a half years, I can honestly say that this book captures all to well the bleakness that can frequently characterize life there. It also demystifies some of the more obscure tenets of Mormonism that are indecipherable to an outsider. I was frequently exposed to the pleasant, rule-following politeness of devout Mormons when I lived in Pocatello, and rarely came across ex-LDS members that were willing to talk about their experiences. This is not the case with Shawn Vestal's book. This is an author that grew up LDS and has apparently left the church. The disillusionment that imbues the work is at times nearly suffocating, making some stories very difficult to read. "Winter Elders" in particular is a devastating story that communicates in an all-too-visceral way the anger that accompanies the main character who is still struggling with his departure from the LDS community. This is not a book of loosely collected short stories. It is not a novel either. While the stories do not have causal relations, it is not hard to see that they are all connected, be it through character, setting, or attitude.

I give the book 5 stars, despite some hesitancy because of the seething anger that radiates through the book. If you are put off by strong emotion, then this is not the book to read. Nor is it the book to read if you are currently a practicing Mormon. This book will piss. you. off. The reasoning behind my 5-stars is based on the intense, engaging, sometimes-overwhelming stylistic integrity of the work. This is an author with a voice, strong and consistent, and often challenging for the reader. This is a book that will make you uncomfortable. It is also a book that will fascinate you, keep you reading, voraciously, until the book's uneasy resolution in the final story "Diviner".

If you've ever lived in Idaho... this is a must-read.
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voncookie | 4 weitere Rezensionen | Jun 30, 2016 |
Having lived in Idaho for 3 and a half years, I can honestly say that this book captures all to well the bleakness that can frequently characterize life there. It also demystifies some of the more obscure tenets of Mormonism that are indecipherable to an outsider. I was frequently exposed to the pleasant, rule-following politeness of devout Mormons when I lived in Pocatello, and rarely came across ex-LDS members that were willing to talk about their experiences. This is not the case with Shawn Vestal's book. This is an author that grew up LDS and has apparently left the church. The disillusionment that imbues the work is at times nearly suffocating, making some stories very difficult to read. "Winter Elders" in particular is a devastating story that communicates in an all-too-visceral way the anger that accompanies the main character who is still struggling with his departure from the LDS community. This is not a book of loosely collected short stories. It is not a novel either. While the stories do not have causal relations, it is not hard to see that they are all connected, be it through character, setting, or attitude.

I give the book 5 stars, despite some hesitancy because of the seething anger that radiates through the book. If you are put off by strong emotion, then this is not the book to read. Nor is it the book to read if you are currently a practicing Mormon. This book will piss. you. off. The reasoning behind my 5-stars is based on the intense, engaging, sometimes-overwhelming stylistic integrity of the work. This is an author with a voice, strong and consistent, and often challenging for the reader. This is a book that will make you uncomfortable. It is also a book that will fascinate you, keep you reading, voraciously, until the book's uneasy resolution in the final story "Diviner".

If you've ever lived in Idaho... this is a must-read.
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anna_hiller | 4 weitere Rezensionen | Jun 22, 2016 |
The topic of this book really intrigued me. It takes place in the 1970's in a Mormon sect that is involved in plural marriage. There is a cast of characters, but mainly the book centers on 15 year old Loretta who is forced into becoming a sister wife. There is also 3 teenage boys, one of whom is also Mormon.

It was interesting that Evel Knieval is featured in the book. The time period and location of Arizona and Idaho is at the time that the great daredevil Evel was doing his famous motorcycle jumps.

Loretta, along with two other boys, long to do something meaningful and break out of the monotony of their life, but along with that comes consequences.

Each chapter portrays a different character. Sometimes it was not enough to explain why they acted the way they did though. The mood of the book was depressing for me. It was sad to see these teenagers feel so hopeless and already tired of life. I was a bit disappointed the end did not elaborate more on what happened to these young characters. It left me wanting a bit more.
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melaniehope | 3 weitere Rezensionen | Jun 6, 2016 |

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