4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster - 4 stars (Subdue)

[Joy D]

4 3 2 1 by Paul Auster - 4* - My Review

The book opens with a family history. A Russian Jewish immigrant is renamed Ichabod Ferguson at Ellis Island. He marries and has four children. One of his sons, Stanley, marries Rose, and they have one child, Archie Ferguson. The narrative then morphs into four versions of Archie's life. These four stories feature the same characters with the same personality traits in much the same setting. They play different roles in Archie’s life. The primary variables are environment, life events, and choices.

In each story, Archie’s life and ultimate fate is different. There are many scenes take place in the 1960s against a backdrop of sweeping social changes. History remains the same, but Archie’s life is different. It seems to be exploring the concept of the multiverse. For example, in one version he lives with his mother and father and in another his mother and stepfather. It may be a fire that changes his life or different types of accidents or the death of someone close to him. He loves sports in all but participates in different ways. His love interest in each (in one form or another) is Amy.

It is primarily character driven. It includes many pop-culture references. I found it easy to get involved in the story and was interested to discover the different outcomes for Archie. The writing is strong and in the style of stream-of-consciousness. The structure is the main drawback. Instead of telling four separate stories all the way through, it tells part of Archie’s life four times, then moves to the next part of his life, and tells it four times. Therefore, the reader needs to pay close attention to chapter headings. There are several long digressions that add pages but not much value to the story (e.g., a segment about shoes). It is a thought-provoking book that can be used as a springboard to contemplate one’s own pathways through life. I look forward to checking out the author’s catalogue.

“Such an interesting thought, Ferguson said to himself, to imagine how things could be different for him even though he was the same, the same boy in a different house with a different tree, the same boy with different parents, the same boy with the same parents who didn’t do the same things they did now. What if his father was a big game hunter, for example, and they all lived in Africa. What if his mother was a famous movie actress and they all lived in Hollywood? What if he had a brother or a sister? What if his Great Uncle Archie hadn’t died and his own name wasn’t Archie?...Just because things happened in one way didn’t mean they couldn’t happen in another.”