Re: The Mezzanine
Parthenia Ross Darrell (prd9b@uva.pcmail.virginia.edu)
Tue, 25 Feb 97 13:32:04 EST
In reading the first half of The Mezzanine, one probably wonders, What is the
point of the author's explicit detail in describing his life? Do we really
care if he got a bag to hide his shoelace purchase at CVS? Or how strange it
was that his shoelaces broke within several days of each other? The
worthiness and foundation of this detail is revalent to our life because of
the reader's ability to relate it with the small frustrations of their own
life. As stated on the front cover, the story line is full of "bursts of
recognition, humor and wonder." The reason for such humor and wonder is in
fact the recognition. If no one could relate with learning how to tie a shoe
or the meaning of drinking milk with cookies, one would not be amused. The
author's realization of the true beauty of olives, "on their own, olives are
old, pickled, briny, rusty -- but set them off against the background of
cream cheese and you have jewelry," (39) reflects the meaning of this novel
for me. As simple daily thoughts exist as olives, the cream cheese is a book
like this that enables someone to relate and gain not only recognition, but
humor and wonder.