Affliction

An overwhelmingly sad story about generational violence and alcoholism, and how it affects a basically good man in a rural New Hampshire town. We see in the main character, Wade Whitehouse, the type of man whose failures in achieving an "American Dream" life make him susceptible to conspiracy theories and self-hatred until he boils over in a thunderclap of alcohol and fire. Running parallel with Wade's actions is the dying small town and it's fewer and fewer inhabitants slowly being taken advantage of by fat cats out to turn a huge profit. It's telling that this all plays out over the two weeks of deer hunting season when the area is consumed with rifles and taking lives.
This is a dark, cold book, much like the early winter that quickly show more descends upon the town. The only humor is in the form of people's misunderstandings of themselves and each other. It is also a compelling read, with nice use of foreshadowing and an interesting narrative device. Although the book takes place in the 1980s, Wade is exactly the target audience groomed first by Rush Limbaugh, then by Fox News and ultimately delivered to Trump. show less

Banks has beautiful descriptions of northern New Hampshire in this book and, frankly, they are the best part of this novel. The plot is slow and a bit of a mess, like the protagonist. In a few paragraph's the narrator (Banks) steps back and describes the affliction of men who were physically abused by their fathers. These are terrific but, unfortunately, the narrative only weakly supports these sections.

Wade Whitehouse is an improbable protagonist for a tragedy. A well-digger and policeman in a bleak New Hampshire town, he is a former high-school star gone to beer fat, a loner with a mean streak.It is a mark of Russell Banks' artistry and understanding that Wade comes to loom in one's mind as a blue-collar American Everyman afflicted by the dark secret of the macho tradition. Told by his articulate, equally scarred younger brother, Wade's story becomes as spellbinding and inexorable as a fuse burning its way to the dynamite.

The more I read of Banks, the more I wonder how I've made it this long without reading more of him. His prose is beautiful and his subject matter is always darkly compelling.

Affliction is no exception, delving deeply into a man it would be easy to ignore. In fact, for the most part, that seems to be Wade's defining feature; he's overlooked for so long, until even after it would seem impossible to avoid him, he disappears. It would be easy to say the book describes his steady descent into madness, but his inner world is so richly described that it's impossible not to sympathize with him.

At once a taut thriller and a densely-woven character piece, Banks has created a masterpiece.

The movie, unfortunately, is not nearly as good.

Rolfe Whitehouse narrates how he believes the last few days of Wade’s (his older brother) life played out. Rolfe makes it clear from the beginning that Wade Whitehouse went missing and under some very violent circumstances. From there Rolfe dips in and out of the minds of many characters that inhabit Wade’s world. Rolfe is trying to make sense of Wade’s final days so that he could possibly move on with his own life, which may prove harder that Rolfe realizes.

The major theme is that of the danger that traditional ideas about manhood (strong, warrior-like, breadwinning, emotionally cold) can cause on an individual who may not fit that mold. Abuse and alcoholism represent the vicious cycle of violence perpetuated by these masculine show more ideals, to which no man could ever live up. Most of the men in Affliction fall into coarse versions of those ideals by asserting their dominance and power in other, usually violent, ways.

Banks expertly creates the mood of a New Hampshire winter steeped with beauty and, strangely, aggression. All the open wilderness is a claustrophobic space that these characters live in, and things get hairy in such tight quarters. The landscape, the abuse and alcoholism, the thwarted male ideology all work well to show the breakdown of man who tumbles through a series of unfortunate circumstances, never really finding the footing he needs to right himself.

Great read. Still have to see the movie. show less

Wade Whitehouse could be an ordinary guy. He could be that small town, hard-working, have a beer with the boys, all-around nice guy. Except bad luck not only follows Wade like a hungry dog, it bites him when he's down. No matter how caring Wade Whitehouse is on the inside, no matter how well-meaning he is, when things go wrong people know not to stand in his way. The entire tiny town of Lawford, New Hampshire knows Wade and his troubles. It's no secret he has a mean streak that runs to the center of his very core. Alcohol and a nagging toothache only widen that streak until it takes over his whole being. In theory it's not all Wade's fault. Abused by his father during his formative years, Wade loses his wife, home and daughter when he show more himself turns violent. All he wants is more time with his daughter, a decent paycheck and a simple way of life. When none of these things come easily Wade sets out to unveil the truth and right the wrongs, using violence as the vehicle to do so. What makes Wade's story so fascinating is that it is told from a younger brother's perspective. Being in Massachusetts he is a comfortable distance from both his brother and the memories that have scarred him, too. show less

Affliction was the first novel I have read by Russell Banks. This is a difficult novel and a difficult author to which to describe my reactions. There is a realism here that some part of me feels that I should appreciate and should benefit from. In the back of my mind, though, I can’t help but think of Russell Banks as Richard Russo with a very negative world view. The setting for Russell Banks is New Hampshire versus Russo’s upper New York state. Similar small town trying to survive given the loss of the historical businesses that created it in the first place. Most inhabitants of the world that Russell Banks creates are just surviving. The story, though, is very well told for the most part, and there is depth and a richness to the show more characters.I enjoyed the writing; I found it simple, unpretentious and consistent with the story being told. I didn’t find myself really liking any of the main characters, but that isn’t a requirement as long as they are engaging. I think one of my GR friends said that she needed to see growth in the main characters. I didn’t see any character growth here. There are certainly some lessons that can be learned, but struggled to relate to them. So while I respected and admired the end result and found it somewhat engaging, I am not drawn to it and am not sure I will read more of Russell Banks. There is just too much more to enjoy. show less