Warp: A Novel [Paperback]

Fun, sassy, and sardonic in its opening pages, this first novel tells the story of Hollis, a recent Harvard grad who loves Star Trek reruns and hasn't a clue about what to do with the rest of his life: a timely dilemma, since he has just cashed in his last bank certificate, quit his job, and lost his girlfriend to a fancy firm downtown. Grossman has captured the real thing: a smart guy who doesn't know whether he should immerse himself in corporate culture. The writing is full of sly humor and the kind of erudite facts favored by recent graduates, along with a cynicism that only the young can sustain. Grossman is most successful in capturing voice (here meaning angst) and rendering great dialog. Too often, though, he interjects sf vignettes and snippets of dialog that could have been lifted from a medieval romance. In the book's major quest, Hollis and a buddy break into the house of a friend of the family, and the low stakes involved zap away all tension. Meanwhile, the charming, enigmatic Xanthe floats through the book, appearing (or not appearing, it's hard to tell which) at the oddest places. A fun take on life for the twentysomething crowd that doesn't quite succeed but offers entertaining moments.?Doris Lynch, Monroe Cty. P.L., Bloomington, Ind.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.

First novel from a twentysomething about twentysomethings in Boston. Star Trek aficionado Hollis went to Harvard, where he majored in Urban Studies. When asked what that is he says, ``I forget exactly. I think there was a large filmic component.'' He's a collection of clever remarks, and Grossman does not so much tell his story as take a snapshot of him during a time of indecision as he wanders through an evening and a night and a day in search of meaning. Hollis is a likable fellow, a smart-ass, though not malicious, always visualizing himself in Star Trek episodes; or as a noble knight-errant who must leave beautiful maidens behind as he goes off to serve the king; or as a brave little boy in a children's story, sailing out to capture a sea monster that has been terrorizing the village. Hollis is endlessly self-conscious, trying on different identities to see if one could possibly fit. In scenes with his friends, similarly educated and aimless, he offers some comic commentary, just as his idol, James Joyce, does in Ulysses. He has a sort of epiphany deep in the night, too: a meeting and quick sex with a punker named Xanthe. Then, during the day, he meets an old girlfriend, Eileen, who is actually working, and suggests that Hollis soon will be, too. And so he will, but not before more clever talk in bars, more hours before the tube, and some more daydreaming. Far gentler than Jay McInerney's Bright Lights, Big City. Despite the repeated references to Joyce, the style and subject here are far more reminiscent of the young Fitzgerald. Grossman can write, but sooner or later he'll have to find a subject. -- Copyright ©1997, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

While his friends lives are on hold, another reality is running constantly in Hollis's head, one that leads him to believe that maybe, just maybe, it's time to get serious. Unlike other self-indulgent, whiny narratives of post-graduation angst, Warp is a lucid and immediate novel of what and where a twenty-something's mind is when it isn't even made up yet.