Choo! Choo!, Girls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                     Darlings, who would think the day would come, when you would hear me singing the praises of a Denis Johnson book?????  Not that Mr. Johnson is a bad writer, by any means; oh, no!!!! But, when I read his signature collection of short stories, "Jesus' Son," about a bunch of heroin addicts, I thought it high on technique and style, but it left me kind of cold.  Then, along came his mammoth opus, "Tree Of Smoke," which won the 2007  National Book Award.  In my literary circle, loves, I was the only one who actually finished it.  Not that it was unreadable; unlike Karl Marlantes' "Matterhorn," it moved and flowed, and the language was accessible enough for the general reader, where you didn't have to have been a vet to have read the book--as in the case of Marlantes.  But "Tree Of Smoke" was too long for the story it had to tell, and too much like other war stories I had read, most notably Tim O'Brien's "The Things They Carried," and, especially, Michael Herr's "Dispatches."

                                    When his much shorter work, "Nobody's Move," came out in 2009, I did not even give it a glance; having been burnt twice, I felt, I wasn't going to go back to Denis Johnson anytime soon.

                                     Then came this innocuous little volume, "Train Dreams," pictured above. At first, I thought it was a Children's, or Young Adult, book.  You have to admit, the cover has that look.  But, when I saw the reviews it got, and that it landed on the Times' Notable List, I decided maybe, when I had a chance, I would give it a look. Well, that chance came; about a month ago, I was in the Strand one evening after work, meeting my beloved Monsieur, when I came across a copy of the book.  At only 116 pages, I figured, what did I have to lose????  So, I bought the book, took it home, and over the past two days, read it.

                                       Lambs, I think it should have landed on the Times' Ten Best List!  Better than that "11/22/63," "Swamplandia," and, especially, "Ten Thousand Saints!!!!!!!!!"

                                      Sweeties, let me be the first to say, this is a Denis Johnson worth reading.  While compared to Cormac McCarthy--and that is easy to see--"Train Dreams", in its brevity, packs such a wealth of scope, history, and myth, it is a miniature American gem.  This book says in just 116 pages what most take 600 to get across.  Johnson does just the reverse of what he did with "Tree Of Smoke;" writing a much shorter book, venturing in generic territory explored by others, he comes up with his own poetic vision  that sweeps the reader away.  It is achingly poignant and moving,  and I was a bit sorry when it ended.  So much so, I found myself saying, "THIS was Denis Johnson????????"

                                          But, then, I did some research, and discovered he is an accomplished poet, with several collections.  What he has done with this novel is written a kind of prose poem about a section of the American West at the turn of the last century.  It is gorgeous and lyrical, and makes me wonder if I shouldn't go back and read "Nobody's Move."

                                          Denis Johnson, darlings!!!!!!!!!  I never would have thought, till now!  If you have  never read him before, make "Train Dreams" your first.  It will send you into flights of rapturous literary ecstasy!!!!!!!!!!!!

                                            And that is Ecstasy by Language, dolls, not Narcotics!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!