Winner of the National Book Award, this is an intelligent novel, well constructed, with an intricate plot and great characters. It is not clear at times where the author is going and how he intends to get there, but in the end it all comes together and works very well.
The book, and the characters in it, are inspired by a tightrope walker who illegally strings a cable between the twin towers of the World Trade Center and walks across. The author is making a statement about 9/11. but to me he connection is tenuous. That was the weakest part of the book - the final section that moved forward to the current time. But it's still a great read, filled with interesting characters and an engrossing look back into the 1970s.
I just saw the movie "Man on Wire" about that tightrope walker. Great film and it had me immediately thinking about the 9/11 connection. It has priceless footage of the construction of the twin towers and Philippe Petit conceived the idea before the towers were even built. The movie was made well before 9/11 but I still had an eerie feeling that Philippe Petit was meant to do this stunt and create beauty out of what would one day be a scene of horror. It's available for free viewing via netflix. Anyway, I will definitely read this book as a follow up.
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