A Father, a Son, and Five Hundred Miles Across Spain
December 1, 2022
In Why Fathers Cry at Night, Newbery Medalist and New York Times best-selling author Alexander (Swing) blends memoir and love poems, recalling his parent and his first years of marriage and fatherhood as he ponders learning to love (50,000-copy first printing). After abandoning her marriage as the wrong path, Biggs looked at women from Mary Wollstonecraft to Zora Neale Hurston to Elena Ferrante as she considered how to find A Life of One's Own. A celebrated New York-based carpenter (e.g., his iconic Sky House was named best apartment of the decade by Interior Design), self-described serial dropout Ellison recounts how he found his path to Building. Shot five times at age 19 by a Pittsburgh police officer (a case of mistaken identity that amounted to racial profiling), Ford awoke paralyzed from the waist down and learned he was a new father; a decade later, he recounts his path to social activism and An Unspeakable Hope for himself and his son. From the first Black American female designer to win a CFDA Award, Wildflower takes James from high school dropout to designer of a sustainable fashion line showcasing traditional African design to founder of the booming social justice nonprofit Fifteen Percent Pledge (businesses pledge to dedicate 15 percent of their shelf space to Black-owned brands). Minka's fans will proclaim Tell Me Everything when they pick up her hand-to-mouth-to Hollywood memoir (30,000-copy first printing). In Whistles from the Graveyard, which aims to capture the experience of confused young millennials in the U.S. Marines, Lagoze recalls serving as a combat cameraman in the Afghan War and witnessing both bonding with locals against the Taliban and brutality toward innocent people by young men too practiced in violence. To cement ties with his eldest son, star of Netflix's hit Dead to Me, veteran actor and New York Times best-selling author McCarthy found himself Walking with Sam along Spain's 500-mile Camino de Santiago. A first-generation Chinese American with a seafaring father and a seamstress mother, Pen/Faulkner Award finalist Ng (Bone) recounts being raised in San Francisco's Chinatown by the community's Orphan Bachelors, older men without wives or children owing to the infamous Exclusion Act. Thought-provoking novelist Pittard (Reunion) turns to nonfiction with We Are Too Many, an expansion of her attention-getting Sewanee Review essay about her husband's affair with her best friend (80,000-copy first printing). Delighted by all the queer stories she encountered when she moved to Brooklyn, book publicist Possanza uses Lesbian Love Story to recover the personal histories of lesbians in the 20th century and muse about replacing contemporary misogynistic society with something markedly lesbian. In Uncle of the Year, Tony, Drama Desk, and Critics Choice Award nominee Rannells wonders at age 40 what success means and whether he wants a husband and family; 19 original essays and one published in the New York Times. Describing himself as Uneducated (he was tossed out of high school and never went to college), Zara ended up as senior editor at Fast Company, among other leading journalist stints; here's how he did it (30,000 copy first printing.)
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March 15, 2023
A father and son take to the road. Actor and travel writer McCarthy recounts an arduous, emotional five-week, 500-mile trek on the Camino de Santiago with his 19-year-old son, Sam, a walk that McCarthy had completed 25 years before, when he was in his early 30s and looking for insight. "Single and childless," he recalls, "I was several years removed from a drinking habit that had derailed my life. I had put down cigarettes just eight months earlier. My movie career, which had once showed such promise, was essentially over. And I was terrified to be making this walk alone." The second time around, instead of terror, he felt anxious hope that walking together would foster an "emotional transition" in his relationship with his son, which, he admits, had been rocky. For his part, Sam agreed to go on the walk in the aftermath of a romantic breakup. Irritable and self-absorbed, he was far less interested in talking to his father--his responses were often curt, punctuated by "whatever"--and much more focused on scrolling his phone, calling friends, and checking social media. For the few hundred miles, when Sam did talk, it was mostly about his ex, and sometimes about his parents' divorce, which sent him back and forth between households. For his part, the author thought about his insecurities as a parent, his relationship with his angry, volatile father, and his capacity for happiness and love. The walk, McCarthy reflects, "acts as a receptacle for our fears, doubts, and resentments, while summoning our more noble traits." As a travelogue, the narrative is no advertisement for the pilgrimage. The trail is blisteringly hot and dusty, and in villages along the way, the two encountered surly waiters, bad food, and inadequate places to stay. The walk, though, was never about the destination but rather about a father and son readying themselves for a new stage in their lives. A candid record of a difficult journey.
COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
May 1, 2023
Wasn't he in those movies in the eighties? Now a director, travel writer, and the author of two previous memoirs and a YA book, McCarthy (Brat: An 80s Story, 2021) this time around shares his journey walking the 500-mile Camino de Santiago with his 19-year-old son, Sam. The author had taken the same trek 26 years earlier and wanted to repeat the experience, preferably before his son left home; Sam's recent breakup provided the ideal opportunity for the month-long trip. The daily rigors open doors to talks about music and food as well as to deeper conversations about life and purpose. Sam ruminates on lessons learned from his ex, and McCarthy reflects on his difficult relationship with his own father while seeking to impart important truths in moments of receptivity. Both learn about their strengths and frailties during their time together. McCarthy's depiction of the rewarding endeavor of walking the Camino with his son is both worthwhile and entertaining.
COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
April 1, 2023
Twenty-five years after actor-turned-writer McCarthy (Brat: An '80s Story) trekked 500 miles across Spain's Camino de Santiago, he returned with his 19-year-old son, Sam, who is also an actor. The author wanted to tackle the Camino again, find common ground, and forge an adult relationship with his son. McCarthy shares exquisite details of their surroundings, providing historical context as they leave France's Pyrenees, journey through Spain's Basque Country, cross the areas of Pamplona, La Rioja, Leon, and Galicia, and end in Iberia a month later. Along the way, they face weather extremes, blisters, the love triangles of fellow pilgrims, and McCarthy's own fears of being exposed to his son as deficient in his abilities and knowledge. The process of the two connecting over time is heartwarming and relatable. During that time together, Sam navigates his first breakup, struggles with waking up in the mornings, and expresses curiosity about his parents' divorce after many years. McCarthy often finds the humor in their interactions, and their freeform discussions range from Spanish history to confirmation bias and Sam's disappointment in an educational system that rejected him. VERDICT A sweet gem of a tale that will appeal to McCarthy fans and those who appreciate a challenging journey.--Lisa Henry
Copyright 2023 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.