The Post-Standard (Syracuse, New York)
February 24, 2008 Sunday
FINAL EDITION
"CALL ME’ IS PASSIONATE, EXTRAORDINARY
By Vikas Turakhia Newhouse News Service
Andre Aciman’s first novel, "Call Me by Your Name" (Picador, $14),
offers an extraordinary depiction of lust and longing, a level of
devotion so absolute that it lies only within reach of an untested
adolescent heart.
Every summer, Elio gives up his room to a visiting scholar his
expatriate parents host at their Italian Riviera estate. Normally,
the guest is just "another bore" to the precocious teenager, but when
17-year-old Elio meets the 24-year-old American staying that summer,
he finds himself undone.
Critics gushed about the novel, but the summary and superlatives
lining the back cover of "Call Me by Your Name" offer a disheartening
lesson on book marketing.
The blurbs are edited to avoid revealing that the lovers are men.
Masking this central aspect does no service to Aciman’s unabashed,
passionate illustration of the sexual awakening of his central
character.
Other books newly released in paperback include:
"The Bastard of Istanbul" by Elif Shafak (Penguin, $14): Readers fond
of cross-cultural family dramas will find much to enjoy in this novel
revolving around a 19-year-old girl’s friendship with her
Armenian-American cousin. Shafak received international attention
when she was charged by Turkey’s government with "denigrating
Turkishness" by bringing in the Armenian genocide of World War I.
"Triumph" by Jeremy Schaap (Mariner, $14.95): Schaap, an ESPN
reporter and author of "Cinderella Man," recounts Jesse Owens’ 1936
Olympic feat of four gold medals and two world records. Noting that
"Triumph" cannot compete with historian William J. Baker’s 1986
biography of Clevelander Owens, Plain Dealer Book Editor Karen R.
Long said Schaap "writes knowingly about press manipulations and the
relentless politics of sports."
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
