Going To See The Elephant (2008) - Plot & Excerpts
A good coming-of-age novel of someone who got a lucky break.It's effectively a magic talisman (not really, but go with me here). It allows our hero to land a job as a reporter and get great scoops, but as a result, he never really learns how to find the scoops himself. In any other story, the talisman would break, or someone would find out, or he'd learn that he did it all on his own - but none of that is true in this tale. Our hero may surprise you.I say "hero" not because he is particularly heroic, but because he firmly believes - rightly - that he is the protagonist of a story, and thus expects (and receives) various fortunate coincidences. It is when he puts that thinking aside does the novel end, because he has outgrown it.There are other elements of the story, but they are less important: a mad scientist, a devastatingly beautiful chess player, a blind madman, a treacherous mayor, a pair of desperate editors, an ancient socialite. All of these, and the subplots they spawn, are only window dressing to the larger tale. As such, they are quickly dropped at the end of the book, almost as I'd they had been wholly devised by the protagonist to rationalize their actions in his personal narrative. I can't call this a 5-star phenominal story but I think 4 stars is definitely low-balling it. I found this novel to be honestly adorable - great characters and great writing. To me if just felt light and mesmerizing and so eccentric it was normal. Slater Brown is cute and so-unbelievable I totally believed him.And, let me just say that the description written on Good Reads? Just horrible, terrible, and I'm glad I ignored that to read the book.
What do You think about Going To See The Elephant (2008)?
So interesting because it's all SF based. Reminded me of Herb Caen.
—cookiecrumble123
Quite enjoyed reading this, but I wanted more from the ending.
—dublaq
Going to See the Elephant by Rodes Fishburne (2008)
—jbenjamin24
