David Schwinghammer's Blog - Posts Tagged "ww-ii"
Some Luck
SOME LUCK starts in 1920 and ends in 1953 when one of the major characters dies.
We go through the Depression, WWII, the Korean War and the beginning of the Cold War, which freaks one of the wives out. She thinks Stalin is definitely capable of dropping the bomb at any time.
At first the book reads like a phone book. Rosanna and Walter Langdon start farming in Iowa. Walter had had about enough being treated like a servant on his father's farm. He has a tough time, especially with the weather. In the thirties the crops dried up, and Rosanna had to slaughter half her chickens. She had had a steady income selling eggs and butter at the local grocery store. Walter is down to two cows at one time, but it finally starts to rain and they make it. Meanwhile they have a bunch of kids, one whom Roseanna delivers herself when he shows up early.
The book finally comes alive when Frankie is born, their oldest son. He is a live wire and could care less what anybody else expects of him. He's also good looking and smart. Rosanna and Walter invest in Frankie by sending him to high school in Chicago, with Eloise, Roseanna's Communist sister. Eventually he attends Iowa State where he meets a spoiled rich kid Lawrence. They're ying to the other's yang. Without Lawrence Frankie would not have met Hildy, who would eventually become his wife. But Frankie joins the army two quarters shy of earning his degree. Turns out Frankie is a dead shot and passes all the tests required of a sniper. He fights in Africa against Rommel, Sicily, at Anzio, and Monte Cassino, before being transferred to Southern France. He's especially nonplussed when Eisenhower stops the American advance at the Rhine, allowing Stalin to take Berlin. Frankie also meets Rubin, who will be an important acquaintance later in life. Rubin is the Milo Minderbender (Catch-22) of SOME LUCK. He's constantly collecting valuables to sell when the war is over.
Frankie never finishes college, for some reason, but he is hired by OSS operative Arthur, his little sister's husband to go over Nazi papers, especially those about advanced German weaponry. Arthur can also read people, and Frankie is the kind of person who can sell ice cream to an Eskimo. Arthur uses him as an unpaid spy, ferreting out Communists. Arthur now works for the FBI and the despised Herbert Hoover. Frankie bumps into Hildie again, only now she calls herself Andie, which sounds more like the fashion designer she's now become. They get married. Andie's uncle dies, leaving her some money. And along comes Rubin, real name Rubino, who is now a real estate investor. Frankie makes a killing.
Walter and Rosanna pop in and out of the story as do Joey, Frankie's farmer brother who has a special knack for the job, especially hybrid corn. There are also children of children, and they grow up in a hurry, with stories of their own. Then the story comes to a screeching halt, mainly because this is the first in a series. The book is no A THOUSAND ACRES. If you'll remember that was about a modern version of KING LEAR set in Iowa farm country. It won the Pulitzer. If you care about Frankie and the gang, you might want to get synopses of the other books in the series.
We go through the Depression, WWII, the Korean War and the beginning of the Cold War, which freaks one of the wives out. She thinks Stalin is definitely capable of dropping the bomb at any time.
At first the book reads like a phone book. Rosanna and Walter Langdon start farming in Iowa. Walter had had about enough being treated like a servant on his father's farm. He has a tough time, especially with the weather. In the thirties the crops dried up, and Rosanna had to slaughter half her chickens. She had had a steady income selling eggs and butter at the local grocery store. Walter is down to two cows at one time, but it finally starts to rain and they make it. Meanwhile they have a bunch of kids, one whom Roseanna delivers herself when he shows up early.
The book finally comes alive when Frankie is born, their oldest son. He is a live wire and could care less what anybody else expects of him. He's also good looking and smart. Rosanna and Walter invest in Frankie by sending him to high school in Chicago, with Eloise, Roseanna's Communist sister. Eventually he attends Iowa State where he meets a spoiled rich kid Lawrence. They're ying to the other's yang. Without Lawrence Frankie would not have met Hildy, who would eventually become his wife. But Frankie joins the army two quarters shy of earning his degree. Turns out Frankie is a dead shot and passes all the tests required of a sniper. He fights in Africa against Rommel, Sicily, at Anzio, and Monte Cassino, before being transferred to Southern France. He's especially nonplussed when Eisenhower stops the American advance at the Rhine, allowing Stalin to take Berlin. Frankie also meets Rubin, who will be an important acquaintance later in life. Rubin is the Milo Minderbender (Catch-22) of SOME LUCK. He's constantly collecting valuables to sell when the war is over.
Frankie never finishes college, for some reason, but he is hired by OSS operative Arthur, his little sister's husband to go over Nazi papers, especially those about advanced German weaponry. Arthur can also read people, and Frankie is the kind of person who can sell ice cream to an Eskimo. Arthur uses him as an unpaid spy, ferreting out Communists. Arthur now works for the FBI and the despised Herbert Hoover. Frankie bumps into Hildie again, only now she calls herself Andie, which sounds more like the fashion designer she's now become. They get married. Andie's uncle dies, leaving her some money. And along comes Rubin, real name Rubino, who is now a real estate investor. Frankie makes a killing.
Walter and Rosanna pop in and out of the story as do Joey, Frankie's farmer brother who has a special knack for the job, especially hybrid corn. There are also children of children, and they grow up in a hurry, with stories of their own. Then the story comes to a screeching halt, mainly because this is the first in a series. The book is no A THOUSAND ACRES. If you'll remember that was about a modern version of KING LEAR set in Iowa farm country. It won the Pulitzer. If you care about Frankie and the gang, you might want to get synopses of the other books in the series.
