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Snakewalk
A hell-raising biker is blinded in a boating accident, temporarily crushing his will but leading eventually to a determination to remake his life
279 pages, Hardcover
First published June 18, 1989
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January 21, 2023
Interesting read living nearby to where the events described took place, though forty years removed in a way that was similar to my experience with Dave Eggers' 'Heartbreaking Work of Staggering Genius'.
This book is not timeless but the story is. Wheeler's writing rings with the echos of the writers I can imagine he read and enjoyed; Hemingway, Kerouac, Hunter S. Thompson, Vonnegut and Burroughs. Some experience with the lives of blind people seems essential to understanding a lot of what is going on. I saw many glimpses of people I have known in the descriptions and indeed there are archetypes and stereotypes that match easily with my own experience.
Patrick knows that one characteristic doesn't define people but doesn't get past that himself. His "street smarts" and personal competence he uses to take advantage of people's perception of him. Weeds gets this and expresses her contempt for him. We never get to see Patrick change to use his abilities to further his path rather than just opportunistically take advantage of his situation. I hope he did.
This book is not timeless but the story is. Wheeler's writing rings with the echos of the writers I can imagine he read and enjoyed; Hemingway, Kerouac, Hunter S. Thompson, Vonnegut and Burroughs. Some experience with the lives of blind people seems essential to understanding a lot of what is going on. I saw many glimpses of people I have known in the descriptions and indeed there are archetypes and stereotypes that match easily with my own experience.
Patrick knows that one characteristic doesn't define people but doesn't get past that himself. His "street smarts" and personal competence he uses to take advantage of people's perception of him. Weeds gets this and expresses her contempt for him. We never get to see Patrick change to use his abilities to further his path rather than just opportunistically take advantage of his situation. I hope he did.
Displaying 1 of 1 review