Lake Success

Watches. A man goes on a journey as Gary Shteyngart’s novel titled, Lake Success, begins. Protagonist Barry Cohen isn’t an Everyman: he is hedge fund manager with $2.4 billion in assets under management, which he repeats often for the benefit of many listeners and as an affirmation of his worth as an individual. Barry’s journey is to escape his work and his life, as a SEC investigation has him in its crosshairs, and he cannot reconcile himself to the reality than his young son has autism. Barry travels with part of his expensive watch collection, these companions who are reliable and consistent, and exist as emblems that prove Barry’s worth to himself and to those in the know. Shteyngart writes with great skill, holding a mirror up to our unequal society. Barry is as detached from the average American as are many hedge fund managers and wealthy individuals. Passengers on his Greyhound bus are just like the regular people who ride those buses every day. Shteyngart puts the two together and the result is comedy, pathos and insight into contemporary American life. On every page, the prose is finely written. Rating: Four-star (I like it) Click here to purchase Lake Success from amazon.com.