The Easy Chain
| Author | Evan Dara |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Postmodernism |
| Published | 2008 |
| Publisher | Aurora |
| ISBN | 978-0980226607 |
The Easy Chain (2008) is the second novel by the American writer Evan Dara.
It tells the story of Lincoln Selwyn, the son of British parents who grows up in the Netherlands and, following a period of aimless wandering in his 20s, decides to attend the University of Chicago due to its rigorous curriculum. However, after one semester at school, he "quickly climbs the social ladder to become one of the most influential people in the city, but he just as suddenly disappears, leaving no trace of his whereabouts."[1] The back cover summarizes his journey by saying, "Over the last nine months, this charismatic blond with the irresistible accent vaulted to the top of the city's social hierarchy, slept with the majority of its first daughters and racked up an unimaginable fortune."[2]
"It’s a standard enough plot for a novel, except readers familiar with The Lost Scrapbook will know going in that almost nothing about a Dara novel is standard—or easy. The magic of his writing and what he accomplishes through it is, despite its difficulty, obscurity, density, and abstractness, manifested in how mesmerizing, hypnotizing, and just plain readable Evan Dara is."[3]
Two of the more unusual aspects of the novel are the 40-page break midway through the book, which are blank save for a smattering of dashes, words, and ellipses, as well as a 60-page section written in rhythmic and repetitive verse.
References
- ↑ Stinson, Emmett (2011-05-11). "Book Review: The Easy Chain". Known Unknowns. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
- ↑ "The Easy Chain by Evan Dara from Aurora Publishers". www.aurora148.com. Retrieved 2017-05-11.
- ↑ "The Easy Chain by Evan Dara | Quarterly Conversation". quarterlyconversation.com. Retrieved 2017-05-11.