Benjamin, "Bennie," Ford is a middle aged, failed poet. In fact, he has pretty much failed at everything; a couple of marriages, parenting, Alcoholics Anonymous, and more. But he seems to have found himself, writing a letter to American Airlines to get a refund of $392.68 for his flight from New York to Los Angeles. In Dear American Airlines, by Jonathan Miles, Bennie pens a 172 page missive justifying his refund. This particular flight is very important, as he has promised his estranged daughter that he will attend her wedding and walk her down the aisle. But, as you can guess, the flight experiences some issues and his 45 minute layover in Chicago extends much, much longer.
Bennie begins his letter easily enough; he demands his refund. But he has more to say; he uses the letter as way to confront of his past transgressions. Plus, as a translator of Polish fiction, he uses his current job of translating Alojzy Wojtkiewicz' The Free State of Trieste, to provide another view of his predicament. While the protagonist in The Free State of Trieste is physically wounded, Bennie's wounds run much deeper as they are self-inflicted. His letter to American Airlines provides him with a release, one that has been a long time coming. Bennie reviews his childhood, his two failed marriages (one of which provided him with his estranged daughter, Stella), bouts with depression and alcohol, and his career. And his conversations with the other passengers left in O'Hare overnight.
This is a very good first novel from Jonathan Miles. While I expected a commentary on the airline customer service, the fallacy of "on time" reports, or a treatise on overnight stays in a major airport, Dear American Airlines delivered something much different. Yes, there are the comments on disinterested airline employees and uncomfortable airport seating, but the bulk of this novel is about Bennie and the choices he made in life. The beginning sold me, the middle bogged down, and the ending was amazing. I could have put this book down several times but something drove me to keep reading. And I was rewarded with a very satisfying ending. You can see that Miles has talent; he has turned the "airline novel" on its ear. I will be looking forward to his next work.
Technorati tag: book review Jonathan Miles
Comment posted by francie01/27/2009 12:51:13 PM
Homepage: http://blog.visitusinanguilla.com
We don't have a bookstore here and mail from Amazon tends to disapear or take forever.... but I'd get the book if I could, sounds like a good read.
Then again, I could prolly just write one myself, as I've missed kid birthdays and other events I promised to be at, due to those sorts of things, and yes, also 'cause of the choices I made.
Was great meeting you at LS, btw!
Comment posted by Gregg Eldred02/04/2009 05:47:56 PM
Homepage: http://www.ns-tech.com/blog/geldred.nsf
It was great to meet you, too.
Keeping a travel journal, or using Twitter to remind yourself, would go a long way to realizing your book dream. And I have a feeling that your book would be highly entertaining. LOL!
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