The History of Now

Daniel Klein
The Permanent Press (2009)
ISBN 9781579621810
Reviewed by Danielle Feliciano for Reader Views (2/09)

“The History of Now” is a very fitting title for this story. It takes us through centuries of a New England village called Grandville and shows how events that happened hundreds of years ago have an effect on present-day life.  It reads like the family photo album of a town, slowly unfolding story after story and showing the webs that tie everything together.

Wendell deVries is a 65-year-old projectionist of his family’s legacy, The Phoenix, which is a centuries-old movie theater. The Phoenix began as a stage theater, literally built in the ashes left from an arson attack the burned down Melville Block.  Wendell lives a quiet life until he meets a local divorcee and they begin an unlikely affair.  Wendell’s daughter Franny heads up the local drama group and finds herself at odds with a New York playwright who demands her play be performed.  Franny’s daughter Lila is the third generation of the deVries family. Lila is a headstrong teenager who becomes convinced she is of African blood after hearing a lecture at her high school.  This leads her on a quest to discover black relatives.  In addition to the deVries family, we are treated to a myriad of other characters such as a Harvard-obsessed guidance counselor, a Colombian native named Hector and the other townspeople who circle their lives.

“The History of Now” is carefully written, and offers a tasteful feel of nostalgia even when referring to present events.  The history of Grandville is put together in bits and pieces in each chapter, and it is a story that is best told slowly, so it can be savored.  Nothing in this book is given away too quickly; rather, each revelation is slowly revealed at a pace that will please the reader.  The stories told here ring true and the characters are realistic and relatable.  “The History of Now” by Daniel Klein is a good read, and one that may make you consider your own part in history.



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