Ash Wednesday

A very human story.
And I say human because in this novel Hawke makes it possible to believe what's happening; it feels real.
Jimmy is an immature 30 year old soldier in the US army who decided to enrol because he didn't know what to do with his life after his father committed suicide. His life is a complete mess; he has no direction, no perspectives, no motivation. Except for Christy.
Christy has had a tough life, estranged with her father, a politician and womaniser who doesn't seem to connect with her needs, she decides to flee at 16 to get married to an alcoholic. She is divorced at 22 and she knows what to expect from life.
But when Christy and Jimmy meet, they can't help their mutual attraction. What seems to be only a sexual show more relationship becomes something deeper than none of the two could have ever imagined.
They hate each other most of the time, but the love each other more.
Scared of facing responsibility and of his own feelings, Jimmy leaves Christy, who is pregnant without him knowing it.
And that's the starting point of the novel. Christy going back home to Texas, alone and pregnant, and Jimmy, realising he is a piece of "shit" and that he has abandoned what he most treasures, so he decides to leave the army to chase Christy and ask her to marry him.
The chapters move from Jimmy to Christy's point of view; and one of the things I liked most about this novel is the way the characters think and talk about their life, their fears, their beliefs. And how they don't agree most of the time, but somehow that makes them even closer.
This is a story about love, friendship and life, not the kind of sweetened life we find in romantic stories, but the tough life we have to live and endure every day.
Ethan Hawke has proved that, apart from being a brilliant actor, he can also write and make you feel deeply.
Recommended. show less

I chose this audio version of Ash Wednesday because I was curious about Ethan Hawke as a writer. I was astonished at the well written story telling. Hawke's theatrical training came into obvious play at his grabbing narration of an immature young man, James Heartsock, carrying his emotional baggage through life. "Jimmy" thought the army could either distract him from that baggage or eliminate it altogether. He was wrong on both counts.

Hawke created characters that are piercingly honest about human nature, human emotion, and compels the reader to relate to the honesty of those characters. His descriptive language enables one to visualize entire scenes such as describing the antics of a 3 year old in a restaurant who is sitting across show more from him during a serious conversation with his grilfriend. The scene doubles as a prophetic image Jimmy invisions for himself.

The reader may root for "Jimmy", but can predict the consequences of his actions in the real world no matter how heartfelt Jimmy's defective logic is. The ending is good but left me wishing there was a little more finality to it. Wanting to know what happens next, I guess, is a good sign. show less

Di solito guardo con diffidenza agli scrittori che nella vita sono "altro da...": attori, comici, cantanti ecc.
Forse Hawke ha sbagliato mestiere: non male come attore, ma di gran lunga più convincente come scrittore.
Il tema del viaggio fuori e dentro di sé è sviluppato con stile, nonostante sia un topos abusato. I protagonisti sono veri e credibili, umani nelle loro debolezze e nelle loro paure. Da leggere con calma, per riflettere.

I enjoyed Hawke's first novel, and this one was much in the same vein. A relationship is at the heart of the novel, and Hawke's observations and portrayals are right on cue. You might not like to think of the current generation of twenty-somethings as quite like this, but the characters and feelings presented here are entirely believable. It's a fast read, with some memorable passages along the way. It's also nice to see a book/author be able to stick with a scene or two and a character or two throughout an entire book, and make it Work---definately a nice change from all of the novels that jump scenes, chapters, and days every four or five pages.

A quick read with some of the best quotes I've found.

"People don't want to hear what really being in love is like, 'cause it sucks. It's like a diamond; it looks pretty from the outside but inside it's hard, angular, and sharp. Truly loving somebody else should never be confused with a good time. Loving somebody is just as painful and disappointing as it is getting to know yourself. It's probably the only thing worth doing, but that doesn't mean it's gonna be a picnic."

Here Mr Hawke attempts to write the Great American Novel, but fails. Not as bad as it could have been, the prose leaves a lot to be desired, and the principal character is unsympathetic and frankly a little obnoxious. I'm glad I only borrowed it from the library.

An emotional story of love and the transformation from lovers into a young family on a journey. Ethan Hawke is a poetic and beautiful writer.

I was shocked at Ethan Hawke's writing abilities.