As many of you will know, I never studied English beyond GCSE level and thus my reviews are not so much a literary criticism as a stream of feelings. I thought it only fair therefore to expose you all to someone who is probably a lot better at this than I am. Kaitlyn Kane, noted cravat enthusiast and Art blogger with a questionable taste in men, has written about the latest book that has caught her eye and was kind enough to allow me to put it on my little blog. Enjoy!
It’s difficult for me to know where to begin with Wolf in White Van. It’s a book that became incredibly close to my heart very quickly, and so to talk about it feels like exposing something private and sacred. And yet at the same time, as with all things that John Darnielle* creates, it filled me with a zeal to share it and with the conviction that it deserves to be widely read. So here I am, struggling to put into words what makes this book so special.
At its most basic level, Wolf in
White Van is about an incident in the life of teenage boy, Sean, which left
him permanently and obviously physically disfigured. As he carries those scars
into his adult life, the reader gets glimpses of what it’s like to live with such a disability— how strangers react to seeing him,
how everyday actions such as trips to the grocery store are nearly impossible,
how he’s had to learn to make himself
appear unobtrusive and nonthreatening. The exact circumstance of the
incident aren’t revealed until the end of the
book, but as the story unfolds, small hints are revealed; a suspicion begins to
creep into your mind. While you are
slowly uncovering the truth, Darnielle explains
through flashbacks what brought Sean to that point and how he manages to go on
living with trauma.
In that respect, Wolf in White
Van is about how the single choices we make have the ability to forever change
everything in our lives. It’s about learning to accept the path
those choices put you on and learning to let go of futures that can now never
happen. Wolf in White Van is a book that makes it clear that for some,
recovery isn’t an option. Not everyone gets
better. As Darnielle writes, in that situation, as in
all situations you have a choice: “either you go forward or you die.” Sean goes on.
How he manages this is what makes up
the second part of the novel. While in the hospital, Sean creates a mail order
RPG game called Trace Italian. Through the game, in which the player must quest
through a post-apocalyptic world seeking the safe heaven of a
fortress known as Trace Italian, Darnielle explores
how stories can shape and save lives and how they can be a form of shelter.
However, throughout Wolf in White Van, stories and means of escape are
consistently questioned— indeed, one of the major actions of the novel is a trial that takes
place after two young players of Trace Italian take their game out of the world
of fantasy and into their real lives. As the creator of the game, Sean’s guilt comes directly into question. The ambiguity of the novel allows
the question of blame to remain at least partially unresolved while exploring
what moral responsibility, if any, is existent in the creator/fan relationship.
For a short book without all that
much action, Wolf in White Van is full of these types of uncertain and
unresolved questions. It isn’t, as much of Darnielle previous
work is, a cry of triumph. It isn’t a map that shows the reader the
path to salvation— to the Trace Italian, if you will. It’s
a mediation on the meaning. With his his constantly commanding and arresting
prose, Darnielle compels his reader to think about
the aspects of life most of us would rather leave undiscussed.
Because for all that Sean’s case is highly specific and unusual, it’s familiar. Even if most people’s scars aren’t physically displayed on their bodies, everyone carries their past
around with them. Everyone takes solace in stories. We are all constantly asked
to consider our next move, to decide between left and right, right and wrong.
We are all faced with the same ultimate choice: either go forward or you die.
*John Darnielle is in a band, but I’m not going to talk about that for a few reasons. First of all, there’s a lot of people out there that don’t like his band, and I think this book has the chance
to speak to those people as much as his long time fans. Second of all, Wolf in
White Van doesn’t need John’s history and his music to prop it up.
Kaitlyn Kane, along with having many complex and emotional feelings about John Darnielle, has an art blog called Artfully Ambling. Go check it out, you will also find some stuff written by yours truly
Kaitlyn Kane, along with having many complex and emotional feelings about John Darnielle, has an art blog called Artfully Ambling. Go check it out, you will also find some stuff written by yours truly
