Review Four

Continental Drift, Russell Banks

3 Stars

I am a big fan of Russell Banks. Around 2004, when I was living in Vermont, I went on a Russell Banksathon and read a bunch of his books back to back. I strongly recommend The Sweet Hereafter and Affliction to anyone who hasn't read them. (And the movie for The Sweet Hereafter is also amazing.)

Continental Drift never grabbed me in the same way. The plot felt contrived. In Affliction, in contrast, the protagonist's problems seemed so real I could almost feel the severe toothache that afflicts him throughout the book. Reading Continental Drift, you can't shake the sense that Banks is making a point and it gets in the way of the story.

I was disappointed to read a Banks book I didn't thoroughly enjoy. Little did I know he would later inflict the execrable The Reserve on the world.