Mondo Bungle

Purity by Jonathan Franzen, 2015

Fairly large scale coming of age story, though admittedly that particular facet of the tale is dwarfed by the recounting of events that lead up to the age in question needing to be come to.

About a young girl living in an anarchist squat in Oakland with student debt and a father shaped hole in her life. The quest she embarks on takes her to a cult-like commune in Bolivia where its even more cult like leader had assured her she would be granted any desired information if she comes to intern, cults naturally having all the connections.

It's her fable in essence though on a strict page-ly basis the book spends more time telling us about the background and various motives of various parties. It can seem long winded here and there but it's genuinely impressive in its way of building and divulging the truth of our protagonist's plight.

It's more contemporary and slice of life-y than exciting but I found it pleasant to read, and was personally quite enamored with the downright anticlimactic ending, it just seemed more real.

4/5

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