Five disparate storylines have at least one thread in common—their connection to an ancient Greek text. Four of the storylines focus on resourceful adolescents, and all five narratives are so distinctive that keeping track of who’s who is not an issue. Omeir and Anna are on opposite sides of the siege of Constantinople in the fifteenth century; Konstance is rocketing toward another planet in the future; and Seymour, on the autism spectrum, becomes extremely distressed by the destruction of wildlife habitats. The fifth storyline follows the life of Zeno, a Korean war veteran, who is rehearsing a dramatic production of the aforementioned Greek story in the local library with five children. Seymour’s and Zeno’s lives intersect early in the novel when Seymour enters the library with the goal of bombing the real estate office nextdoor. All of the characters except Seymour have to dig deep within themselves in an effort to survive life-threatening situations alone. For me, Konstance’s story stands out, because she has to call upon her intellect as well as her inner strength to battle isolation and uncertainty. I find, though, that in most books in which there are several threads in progress that I gravitate to one in particular and tend to focus less on the other storylines that are competing for my attention. However, here I would rate Omeir’s narrative a close second, as his suffering is the most heartbreaking as well as the most vivid. I’m sure the author is promoting a theme in this book, and the best conclusion I’ve reached is that he is pitting the individuals who are striving for preservation of the environment and of knowledge against the hordes that seem bent on destruction. Seymour is the character with a foot in each camp, viewing destruction as a means of preservation, but his vision of the outcome is flawed and unfortunately influenced by entities who do not necessarily share his objective. Thanks to Simon and Schuster for the advance reading copy.
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