Motherless Brooklyn

A novel by Jonathen Lethem and winner of The National Book Critics Circle Award

Motherless Brooklyn is, at its essence, the story of man trying to untangle a complicated murder mystery. In that way, it's not much different from anything else in the mystery/thriller section of your local bookstore. What differentiates Motherless Brooklyn from the rest of the pack is the story's antagonist. Lionel Essrog has Tourette's Syndrome. And the book isn't so much about the murder mystery as it is about Lionel just trying to deal with his disease.

Getting inside Lionel's head is both hilarious and wickedly sad. The reader comes to understand and anticipate his outbursts as well as the weird alienation that comes along with it. The various characters that inhabit Lethem's Brooklyn are colorful, but two-dimensional, with the exception of the murdered small-time-mobster-cum-father-figure Frank Minna, who seems to be the only character who understands Lionel's true strengths. Even though Minna refers to the main character as "freakshow" it's with a gentle kindness so that it's more of a loving nickname than simple name-calling.

The book's strength is that it is still very readable while carrying strong undertones. It's a fascinating novel, both funny and heartbreaking. And its end is very satisfying, and not because the killers are brought to justice, but because our Tourette's suffering hero seems to find some peace as well, even if it's still interrupted by the occasional profanity-laden burst.