Going into this review I had this funny little idea about 1991-2 being a year of growing up for the literary brat pack (a marketing and a journalistic invention that would be long forgotten if it weren't for the fact that we reviewers love it), I made a connection between McInerney, Ellis, Janowitz, Tartt, et al. and the rise and fall in fortunes of the teen pop stars of the late 90s in 2002-03: Timberlake, Aguilera and Spears redefined and ramped up their image while others failing to do so effectively, the Carters, Halliwell, Chasez, etc. faded from the spotlight. Those kind of comparisons are always fun to make and the possibility for debate is endless: How apt is it to compare the by turns serious and comic McInerney to Timberlake, or Ellis, always deviant and a little sexual, by releasing American Psycho, always be a good match for the explicit Xtina? And newcomer Tartt with her The Secret History, who was she, Avril? I had a whole notebook page scribbled with this stuff, embarrassing myself with the amount I remembered about the fluctuating world of pop music from a time I was an ardent fan of Jimmy Eat World and The Strokes and considered pop music beneath me, when the ridiculousness of the project stopped me. What does any of this have to do with Brightness Falls, I asked myself.Nothing. Well, almost nothing. It's just another case of pop eating itself (ooo, remember them?), feeding on nostalgia and prone to be self-referential to the point of absurdity. My point was that McInerney, the same way he tried with his second novel Ransom, is with Brightness Falls making a bid for a serious novel that couldn't be dismissed as a gimmick as the innovative and affecting Bright Lights, Big City is often talked of as. But Ransom was too-far removed from McInerney's comfort zone and, though not a bad book, was not a 'hit.'Brightness Falls is a fat book and, perhaps just because I've been going over vocabulary a lot this month I notice, makes full use of the English language to convey the subtle nuances of the relationship of Russell and Corrine Calloway, as well as a large supporting cast of friends, family, associates and acquaintances. McInerney has a lavish elegance in his style that threatens to be too flush, too verbose, but he remains in control and the effect is almost old-fashioned in its lyricism. But if the book were stripped down of exposition and the tone modernized it would turn into just another book about pretty rich people with problems.What really struck me, about two-thirds into the book, was that these people were my parents exact contemporaries, in their early 30s in the fall of '87, and how little their worlds resembled each other. Not that that's a strange thing in fiction, but what exactly draws me to such stories, of the bored or debased wealthy and cultural elites of cities that I barely know? Novelty is a part of it, but mostly it has to do the main pleasure I have in reading - recognition. Whatever the plot or the setting or context of the story in question, I most often enjoy the authors who are able to observe and explicate the common ground people share, wherever or whatever their existence. McInerney has that talent, a talent that is shared by many other writers to be sure, but who display it in the innumerable variations that keep books interesting. I was drawn deep into this story, and I love title by the way, it's the best book I've read by McInerney and I'm looking forward to its sequel, The Good Life, though 'sequel' seems to be a poor choice of a word, though I can't think of another at the moment, as obviously this book stands on its own and seems to have said everything that could be said about Corrine and Russell Calloway at this point of their lives.
Brightness Falls is a great American novel, which owes a great deal to F. Scott Fitzgerald and his Gatsby. At times, it seems as if McInerney wants to re-tell the Gatsby tale on Wall Street during the Crash of '87. McInerney's Nick Carraway is, after all, Crash Galloway. However, the meaning of this novel transcends this decade and its hideous "greed is good" mantra: it's not simply a "period piece." The story is about the mad pursuit of wealth, the shallowness of the great Faustian trade and the price paid in unintended consequences. The story replays time after time and has done so since Helen of Troy and it always will stand as a poignant, cyclical, cautionary tale about those with unfettered ambition blindly seeking wealth and power. For all the apparent allure and trappings of wealth in New York high society and in big business, Russell Galloway is engaged in a zero-sum game. The writing in this novel is exquisite: I know this is absolute heresy but, at times, McInerney out-Fitzgeralds Fitzgerald. The main characters are round, full, human, distinctive and complex: I found myself intrigued by all of them. The dialogue is witty, funny, honest, real and each character spoke with a distinctive voice. The story-line was unexpected, credible and ambitious in its scale. The final chapter is one of the great closes among 20th century, literary novels. Having worked for global corporations during this time, I was deeply impressed with how well McInerney captured the essence of the era and then rendered his depiction timeless. I really can't say enough about this truly great American novel as the greed, arrogance and quotidian materialism of the late '80s just keeps on re-playing in the 90's of the day trader and in this decade as hedge funds are about to free-fall below the zero-line in their forthcoming decadent, dizzying downside. I was moved by the closing allusions to redemption in this prophetic novel and the optimism inherent in the premise that salvation can be experienced even after epic catastrophe and transcend it through the beauty of love and forgiveness -- even as brightness falls from the air.
What do You think about Brightness Falls (1993)?
In rete trovate numerose vecchie recensioni acute e pregnanti dove viene esaltato soppesato ponderato o demolito il libro... nella maggior parte di esse la protagonista viene chiamata Corinne. (lui � Russell ma � meno delineato e pi� stereotipato non a caso JMcI stesso riutilizzer� entrambi ma appoggiandosi ancora di pi� a lei) Purtroppo devo dar loro una ferale notizia: si chiamava Corrine. Differenza ortografica non rara negli USA dove Marlynn Marlene Marylynn Marleen Marlyn Marlene e altre varianti meno comuni vogliono dire lo stesso nome: Marilyn. Non credo che Mr McInerney abbia messo questo trabocchetto di proposito ma l'effetto di autoperculare chi ha stigmatizzato flagellato e criticato passandosi per americanista (come l'americanista Bonetto de "la donna della domenica", ricordate?) � piacevolmente e cinicamente ottenuto.
—Procyon Lotor
Dans les années 80, à Manhattan, Russel et Corinne forme un couple modèle, envié par tous leurs amis. Lui est éditeur chez Corbin, Dern & Cie, elle est courtière en bourse et est bénévole dans une association d’aide aux démunis. Ils ont trente ans, ils s’aiment et ont l’avenir devant eux, ils s’amusent dans toutes les fêtes où il faut être vu, écument les vernissages et les cocktails. Pourtant, chacun commence à ressentir une insatisfaction, un manque dans sa vie. Russel s’ennuie dans son activité professionnelle, il est tenté par des propositions cinématographiques sur la côte Ouest. Ou alors, pourquoi ne pas profiter de sa rencontre avec un riche homme d’affaires et lancer une OPA sur Corbin, Dern et Cie. Et puis, la routine matrimoniale commence à lui peser, il est attiré par d’autres femmes que la sienne. Quant à Corinne, elle se sent de plus en plus mal à l’aise dans le milieu boursier et voudrait faire une pause, avoir un bébé, arrêter de boire, moins sortir, souffler, quoi. Et puis, il y a leur ami Jeff, un écrivain qui n’a plus écrit depuis plusieurs années, qui a replongé dans la drogue. Cette rechute et la part active qu’ils doivent prendre pour faire entrer Jeff en cure de désintoxication sont un choc pour eux, le passage dans l’âge adulte en quelque sorte.En commençant ce livre, j’ai souvent pensé aux romans de Paula Fox. Comme chez elle, les personnages ne sont pas forcément très sympathiques. Tout l’art de l’auteur est de donner, malgré cela, envie de les accompagner, de s’intéresser aux évènements qu’ils vivent, tant ils sont ancrés dans une époque décrite de façon très réaliste, très concrète. Ici, c’est la crise boursière de 1987 à New York qui va venir contrer les projets de Russel et de Corinne, bouleverser leur existence confortable et les forcer à se remettre en question. C’est une description très vivante du New York de la fin des années 80, dans le milieu des yuppies, de leurs excès, du toujours plus et du difficile retour aux réalités, quand la crise vous oblige à réduire la voilure.C’est ma deuxième lecture de Jay McInerney, après Bright Lights, Big City, et j’ai vraiment envie de découvrir davantage cet auteur. Ça tombe bien, il existe une espèce de suite à Trente ans et des poussières, La belle vie, où l'on retrouve Russel et Corinne après les attentats de septembre 2001.
—Nanou
Re-read on July 11, 2015. Still the best book about New York I have ever read and one of the best books ever written in the XX century. It is like traveling to the big apple but without leaving your seat. *** What an absolutely incredible urban/contemporary novel about the tragedy and inevitability of the symmetrical collapse of the stock market and relationships following the investors/newlyweeds early overoptimism (hence the title "Brightness Falls"). It is the description of these highly complex social ties in the 80's New York elite set against the backdrop of the 1987's financial meltdown that make for a great thought provoking analysis of the rollercoaster that is the stock market/human relationships/life plans/family, et cetera.
—Luís Castilho
