Marathon

W. William Winokur
Kissena Park Press (2006)
ISBN 097685080X
Reviewed by RVreviewer for Reader Views (3/06)

This novel is actually four stories in one, ranging in time from 490 BC to the present day, all skillfully interwoven by first time author W. William Winokur.

The story is a dramatization of the final years in the life of Ion Theodore, a teacher at the Horace Mann School in New York.

Ion is an old man, living in a sub-par nursing home, when his niece, Marianna Gardner, a partner in as prestigious New York law firm tracks him down after years of separation. Appalled with the conditions at the nursing home, Marianna takes Ion home to live with her while she tries to find a better home for him. When Ion receives a mysterious letter from Greece, he insists he must return to the land of his birth to answer the summons of his old friend on his deathbed.

You'll fall in love with the goodness, gentleness and humanity of Ion Theodore as well as his beloved country. I was truly sad to see the novel end.

As I was reading this book, my mind kept picturing Anthony Hopkins portraying Ion. This book just screams "MOVIE !!!"

I do have one note of discord......Mr. Winokur has several subplots in the book, one of which is left unresolved. Perhaps it will be the basis of a follow-up novel.

I am looking forward to the next novel.

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