Later by Stephen King

Later is a novel by Stephen King that was published by Hard Case Crime in 2021. It’s a suspense, crime, and horror story with paranormal elements.

The story is narrated by Jamie Conklin, a young man who recounts strange and horrific events from his childhood in New York City. Jamie is being raised alone by his mother Tia, and the mother-son pair have a close relationship built upon trust.

Tia runs a literary agency. She took over the agency after her brother Harry was diagnosed with early Alzheimer’s disease. Tia struggles to keep the agency afloat because she and her brother made poor financial investments, and their business suffered losses. Now, due to her brother’s illness, Tia must also provide support to maintain her brother’s care.

Since his childhood, Jamie has had the unusual ability to see and communicate with dead people. In his youth, Jamie was frightened after he saw a dead man wave at him after being killed in a car accident in Central Park. Later, he communicated with the dead wife of his neighbor Professor Martin Burkett. Jamie can only see the dead for a short period after they die, and they appear in the same state as when they died (sometimes pretty gruesome). The dead eventually fade out and disappear from Jamie’s view. When he asks dead people questions, they answer him honestly. Jamie’s ability worries his mother, so the pair keep it a secret, and Jamie keeps his sightings to himself.

Later on, we learn that Tia has shared Jamie’s secret with her girlfriend Liz Dutton, a cop who works for the NYPD. Jamie is hurt by his mother’s betrayal. It turns out that Liz is a dirty cop, and Tia eventually breaks up with her. Both Tia and Liz use Jamie’s ability to save their careers. Tia uses her son to learn the plot of a novelist who dies before completing his final novel in a long, popular series.

Afterwards, Liz puts Jamie in substantial danger when she forces him to communicate with an evil serial bomber Kenneth Therriault to figure out where Therriault planted his final bomb. Unlike the other dead people Jamie sees, Therriault doesn’t disappear after a few days, but continues to contact and threaten Jamie. Jamie seeks help from Professor Burkett to rid himself of Therriault’s spirit. Then, just when you think Jamie’s got through the worst, Liz returns to kidnap Jamie and force him to participate in her latest corrupt scheme.

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95 Poems by E.E. Cummings

Published in 1958, 95 Poems was the final book of poetry published by E.E. Cummings during his life. It’s a joyous and beautiful work that left me with a sense of joie de vivre.

The poems are about nature, the seasons, love, aging, as well as observations of people, animals, and the universe. Cummings breaks the rules of punctuation, word order, capitalization, and spacing as an artistic statement. In each poem, his word placement serves a purpose. Cummings’s way of writing is spirited, and his exuberant, unique technique of playing with words is both inspiring and entertaining.

A few of my favorite lines include:

because you aren't afraid to kiss the dirt
(and consequently dare to climb the sky)
-poem 7

For whatever we lose(like a you or a me)
it's always ourselves we find in the sea
-poem 10

but more than all(as all your more than eyes
tell me)there is a time for timelessness
-poem 11

(when time from time shall set us free)
forgetting me,remember me
-poem 16

honour the past
but welcome the future
-poem 60

i carry your heart with me(i carry it in
my heart)
-poem 92


Years ago, my husband and I lived down the street from his birthplace and childhood home in Cambridge, Massachusetts. I wish I’d read this lovely volume back then.

External Link:
Cummings Archive - an archival collection of E.E. Cummings's drafts and notes curated by Aaron M. Moe, Ph.D.

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Tori Amos: Piece by Piece by Tori Amos and Ann Powers

Tori Amos: Piece by Piece is an autobiography of the musician Tori Amos that was cowritten by Amos and Ann Powers. Published on February 8, 2005, the memoir describes Tori Amos’s childhood and musical training, her creative process, and her career and musical circle. The book also provides an enlightening look at Tori’s relationship with her fans and her family life.

As a longtime fan, I enjoyed the parts of the book that described Tori Amos’s songwriting process and creative inspirations. I also liked the chapter on her image in terms of fashion and photography. I gained a sense of what touring is like for her and her crew. It was fun to learn how she creates her unique setlists with consideration for the city she’s playing in and current events. The chapter on her split from Atlantic Records was informative. I knew it was acrimonious, but I had no idea how awful it was. She provides some great advice for aspiring musicians about the music industry.

I wish the book had sharper editing overall. Though I’m a big fan, I found it hard to read the memoir at times. The chapter titles and effort to relate Tori to archetypes and mythological characters seemed forced to me.

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Where Hope Comes From by Nikita Gill

Where Hope Comes From is a book of poetry by Nikita Gill. Published in 2021, Gill’s poems reflect on the coronavirus pandemic and how to find strength and hope in a time of loneliness and isolation. Her poems are divided into five sections thematically using the life cycle of a star. The book is illustrated with her watercolors and drawings.

I especially loved the poems “Letter to My Younger Self in Times of Turbulence,” “Notes on Survival,” “The Present,” “In Contemplation,” and “Spring Cleaning.” I was struck by the lines in “The Confrontation” saying, “This is what loneliness does. It acts as a mirror for who you are.” I also loved the opening lines of “Daily Mantra 2” reading, “There is still room for love. Even after being uprooted…” A few more of my favorites were “The Forest,” “Love in the Time of Coronavirus,” and “93 Percent Stardust.”

I found Nikita Gill’s poems to be thoughtful, understanding, and encouraging. Her sweet message on the book's back cover reminds her readers that they are not alone. Her poems have a universal quality, but they are also grounded in the everyday. I look forward to reading more of her writing.

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Wildflowers: A Guide to Familiar American Flowers by Herbert S. Zim and Alexander C. Martin

Wildflowers: A Guide to Familiar American Flowers (2002) is a Golden Guide from St. Martin’s Press by Herbert S. Zim and Alexander C. Martin and illustrated by Rudolf Freund. The book was revised by Jonathan P. Latimer and Karen Stray Nolting with Dr. Robert A. Defilipps.

I enjoyed reading this helpful guide to American wildflowers. It has beautiful illustrations of flowering plants that we often take for granted or overlook. The book is divided into four sections that organize wildflowers by their predominant color: red to pink and magenta, purple to blue, orange to yellow, and cream to white. The top corners of the pages are color-coded in four corresponding shades, so it’s handy to flip through the guide to locate a specific plant by flower color.

I learned a lot of new things about various wildflower species and their geographic ranges. I also came to know many facts that I was unaware of before. For instance, I never knew that clovers were part of the pea family. The authors have some preferences for wildflowers that don’t align with mine. I love Queen Anne’s Lace, and I think orchids are a bit overrated.





Other than those quibbles, the book is a great reference guide for anyone wanting to learn about wildflowers.

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Judging a Book by Its Lover by Lauren Leto

Judging a Book by Its Lover: A Field Guide to the Hearts and Minds of Readers Everywhere (2012) is a book by Lauren Leto. It’s a collection of essays, with reflections on reading, writing, and authors. Some humorous pieces were republished from Leto’s blog. The chapters are a mixed bag of sincerity and snark.

Some of the chapters resonated with me, especially those on loving reading and finding connections with others through books. It’s clear that Leto loves reading. She knows how to succinctly and humorously describe books, genres, and literary movements. She also provides a wealth of interesting factoids about authors.

Other chapters in the book were less enjoyable to me, especially the long one titled “How to Fake It,” which is a guide to discussing well-known books you haven’t read. I’m not interested in feigning knowledge about books to impress anyone, and I have no problem being honest when I haven’t read a classic or a book by a famous contemporary author. I started wondering who the audience of the book was meant to be—those who love reading or those who pretend to be literary.

In spite of these misgivings, the book made me want to read more. As I read it, I jotted down the names of several authors and books that I’d like to explore in the future. I was glad to have some new ideas on how to expand my reading.

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Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom by Sylvia Plath

In 1952, Sylvia Plath wrote the short story “Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom” while she was an undergraduate student at Smith College. Plath had recently won Mademoiselle’s writing prize, and she decided to submit “Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom” to the magazine for publication. The magazine rejected the story. For years, the short story was in Sylvia Plath’s archives at the Lilly Library at Indiana University at Bloomington until it was published in 2019.

Plath described her story as “a vague symbolic tale.” It begins at a train station. A young woman named Mary Ventura is there with her parents who are encouraging her to take a train ride north to an unknown location. When Mary says, “I’m not ready to take the trip yet,” Mary’s father cuts her off, saying, “You’re just getting jittery. The trip north won’t be an ordeal. You just get on the train and don’t worry about another thing until you get to the end of the line. The conductor will tell you where to go then.” Mary’s mother tells her, “It will be an easy trip. Everyone has to leave home sometime. Everyone has to go away sooner or later.”

The story is colored in many shades, but the predominant shade is red. Mary’s parents find her a red plush seat. Her mother touches her handkerchief to “her painted red mouth,” starts to say something, but then stops. She leaves Mary with a “vague, preoccupied kiss.” Mary then takes off her red coat and settles in for the ride.

Soon after, a kind, red-faced woman with blue eyes asks to take the empty seat next to Mary. Mary smiles back at her warmth. The woman is knitting a dress of leaf-green wool. She says it’s for a girl just about Mary’s size.

As the train rolls on, Mary views the “somber grey afternoon,” and the “bleak autumn fields” stretching “beyond the cinder beds.” The sun is a flat orange disc and the air is thick with smoke. The woman explains that it’s because of the forest fires and that the smoke will get worse.

The woman takes Mary to the dining cart, where she orders a glass ginger ale. It arrives in a tall glass with a red cherry at the bottom. Mary finds the dining car luxurious. The woman later treats Mary to a chocolate bar.

The railroad staff recognize the woman and speak with her confidentially. She’s made the trip several times. When Mary speaks of all the nice things in the train, the woman tells her ominously, “Yes, my dear…but remember you pay for it. You pay for it all in the end.”

Mary asks the woman what it will be like when she gets off the train. Her ticket is for the last station at the end of the line, which is named “the ninth kingdom.” The woman asks Mary if she notices anything unusual about her fellow passengers. While Mary doesn’t notice anything, as I reader, I noticed some religious symbols. The lady in the blue jacket who was carrying a child and who paused at the empty seat next to Mary symbolized Mary, the mother of God. The two squabbling brothers seemed to represent Cain and Abel.

Shortly after, a blond woman with a crimson wool skirt and red painted mouth tries to stay on the train. The conductor forces her to leave by gripping her arm. The woman says his grip “hurts” and “burns” her arm.

Mary’s curiosity about the train and the ninth kingdom grows. She listens as the woman talks with the conductor saying, “they generally don’t protest at all. They just accept it when the time comes.” Mary begins to question her destination, asking, “Accept what?” The woman explains that the passengers are apathetic and “don’t even care about where they are going.” Mary says she’ll get the next train home, but the woman explains that there are no return trips once reaching the ninth kingdom, and that “It is the kingdom of negation, of the frozen will.”

Mary begins to cry, learning that there are no more stops before the train reaches the ninth kingdom. She blames her parents, but the woman tells her, “You let them put you on the train, didn’t you? You accepted and did not rebel.”

With a spark of insight, Mary decides to pull the emergency cord on the train. The woman realizes that Mary is “a spunky one” and tells her that there is still time to assert her will. The woman gives Mary advice on how to escape. When Mary asks, “How do you know? How can I believe you?” the woman calls her a “faithless child.” The woman tells Mary that she has been on her side all along, but that Mary had to make a positive decision and make the break herself.

Mary pulls the alarm, and runs from the train and up a dark staircase where a snake winds around her ankle. Eventually she reaches sunlight, and the snake falls away like a link of metal. Mary finds herself in a city park where the woman from the train is selling white roses and daffodils. The woman meets Mary with a “blue gaze of triumphant love” saying, “I have been waiting for you, dear.”

The short story can be interpreted in many ways. It is a story about taking your own initiative and asserting willpower to choose your own way in life. It’s about leaving home and growing up. It’s about choosing growth over stagnation and choosing thoughtfulness over indifference. It’s about having trust and having faith in the right people.

I’m glad the story was published after so many years. It was a refreshing read.

Related Reviews:
Arial by Sylvia Plath

External Link:
The Genesis of “Mary Ventura and the Ninth Kingdom” by Karen V. Kukil (an essay on the short story)

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Ariel by Sylvia Plath

I re-read Sylvia Plath’s Ariel (1964) this winter, revisiting it after first reading the volume back in 2002. Plath’s book of poems is brilliant and intrepid. Her poems gut you with their rawness and honestly.

I still don’t understand many of the poems fully, but they each made me think. I’ve also been reading literary analyses of many of her poems. I find it curious to see the wildly different interpretations people have of them.

It’s hard to read this work without also contemplating the tragedy of Sylvia Plath’s death. She was hugely talented, driven, and hard-working. I was glad to read this book again because Plath inspires me to write and be truthful and open like her.

I especially loved her poems "Medusa," "Poppies in October," "Kindness," and "Poppies in July."



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On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century by Timothy Snyder

On Tyranny: Twenty Lessons from the Twentieth Century is a tiny, pocket-sized book by historian Timothy Snyder. It contains 20 lessons to counter tyranny. Most of the lessons are followed by a few pages that briefly describe historical moments in the 20th century.

The book is a short read, full of declarative statements. It’s not a history book. There are no footnotes or citations, and the same few authors are repeatedly quoted throughout.

The book started out well, and I thought some lessons were really useful reminders. By the end, though, I thought the author was running out of lessons and struggling to come up with a round twenty. One of the latter lessons was to use autopay to contribute to charities. This lesson fell shortly after Snyder derided the internet and suggested establishing a private life. Coupled, the two lessons felt quite contradictory.

The final lesson was to “Be as Courageous as You Can.” Throughout the book, Snyder makes remarks about Trump without naming him, as though he is Voldemort in the Harry Potter series. I wondered why Snyder failed to have the courage to name him directly. It felt like such an odd choice.

The book’s lessons all center on European history and neglect the rest of the world. I thought about this major omission when Snyder criticized Americans for not having passports. Most often, Americans who lack passports lack the means to travel. Most do not, as Snyder put it, say “they do not need travel documents, because they prefer to die defending freedom in America.” He was definitely speaking from a place of privilege, and the statement felt out of touch.

The book contains the following 20 lessons:

Chapter 1: Do Not Obey in Advance.
Chapter 2: Defend Institutions.
Chapter 3: Beware the One-Party State.
Chapter 4: Take Responsibility for the Face of the World.
Chapter 5: Remember Professional Ethics.
Chapter 6: Be Wary of Paramilitaries.
Chapter 7: Be Reflective If You Must Be Armed.
Chapter 8: Stand Out.
Chapter 9: Be Kind to Our Language.
Chapter 10: Believe in Truth.
Chapter 11: Investigate.
Chapter 12: Make Eye Contact and Small Talk.
Chapter 13: Practice Corporeal Politics.
Chapter 14: Establish a Private Life.
Chapter 15: Contribute to Good Causes.
Chapter 16: Learn from Peers in Other Countries.
Chapter 17: Listen for Dangerous Words.
Chapter 18: Be Calm When the Unthinkable Arrives.
Chapter 19: Be a Patriot.
Chapter 20: Be as Courageous as You Can.

I’m glad I checked this book out from the library as an ebook. Though it was a good read, I think I’d learn more from a more expansive historical work on the subject.

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The Scarlet Imperial by Dorothy B. Hughes

The Scarlet Imperial (1946) is an engrossing, fast-paced crime novel written by Dorothy B. Hughes. Born in 1904, Hughes was a journalist, author, poet, historian, and literary critic. She wrote many detective, mystery, thriller, and crime novels in the noir style. Hughes also penned a biography of Erle Stanley Gardner, who wrote the Perry Mason stories. Previously this year, I read her novel In a Lonely Place, which was a fascinating book.

During her career, Hughes received four Edgar Allan Poe awards from Mystery Writers of America. In 1951, she was given an Edgar Award for Outstanding Mystery Criticism. In 1964, she received an Edgar Award for Best Novel for The Expendable Man. In 1978, she received The Grand Master award from the organization. Lastly, in 1979, she received the award for Best Critical/Biographical Work for Erle Stanley Gardner: The Case of the Real Perry Mason.

The Scarlet Imperial (also published as Kiss for a Killer) is the story of Eliza Williams. We meet Eliza on a grey and rainy spring day that feels like autumn. Eliza is posing as a perfect secretary in Manhattan under a false name. She’s an agent, working for a man named Towner Clay, and she’s awaiting word on how to proceed with her unknown assignment.

Eliza is a mystery at first, but eventually, we learn her story. She has struggled through life, and she doesn’t even know her real name. Eliza believes she was born in Manchukuo and that her family were Americans. As a six-year-old girl, she witnessed the brutal murders of her parents and brother because they were white foreigners. Eliza pretended she was dead to survive. Then she wandered with other refugees, passing as Chinese with her dark hair and eyes. Eliza made her way as a roadside beggar until she eventually reached Shanghai at age twelve. There, Eliza began working as a kitchen maid, and later, she got jobs in cafes and in the best hotels.

In Shanghai, Eliza fell in love with an American flyer named Thaddeus Skowa of The Flying Tigers. The pair planned to marry, but he never returned from the war. Thad died in prison, after being accused of stealing the Scarlet Imperial, a magnificent, jeweled egg that was given as a gift by Peter the Great to the Persian Shah.

When Eliza learned that Thad was dead, she tried to kill herself in her grief. She credits a man named Towner Clay with saving her. Towner, who had been in the diplomatic service, took care of Eliza for months when she was sick and brought her out of the East. After she recovered, she began to help him in return. Towner sought artifacts and treasures stolen by thieves and looters during the war and returned them to their owners. After working for him, Eliza shared the story of the Scarlet Imperial with Towner, and he promised to help her find it and return it to the Iranians. Eliza believes that in doing so, she will bring the true thief to justice and clear her beloved Thad’s name.

In the opening chapter, Eliza is handed a mysterious package. She takes possession of it, and learns the box contains the Scarlet Imperial. Can Eliza keep the Imp safe long enough to carry out her plan?

The story has many complex characters who double cross one another. There’s a handsome, sapphire-eyed, Irish man named Gavin Keane who hands Eliza the Scarlet Imperial and makes her promise to return it only to him. Gavin is shot in Eliza’s building, and she nurses and cares for him. Eliza and Gavin are attracted to each other, but neither fully trusts the other. Eliza’s boss is an attractive importer and exporter of rare objects named Bryan Brewer. Is Bry being above board in his quest to obtain the Imperial for a client, and what does he know about the history of the precious object? A glamorous woman named Feather Prentiss flits in and out of the story. Feather has the attention of all the men, much to Eliza’s jealously and dismay. There’s also an FBI agent Jones who interviews Eliza repeatedly after murders occur at her building. Finally, there’s the Iranian envoy Feroun Dekertian.

If Eliza can get the Scarlet Imperial into Dekertian’s hands safely, then will he really clear her dead fiancé’s name? The reader is left guessing about who is deceiving who and what motivates each character. The Scarlet Imperial a suspenseful and engaging story, and I think it would be fun to see it adapted as a film.

Related Reviews:
In a Lonely Place by Dorothy B. Hughes

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Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews

Me and Earl and the Dying Girl is a novel published in 2012 by Jesse Andrews. The story is narrated by Greg S. Gaines, a senior at Benson High School in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Greg’s main goal in school is to get along with everyone while never being a part of any clique or group.

Greg’s best friend is Earl Jackson. Strangely, instead of calling Earl his best friend, Greg refers to him as his co-worker. The pair make films together, but refuse to share their work with others.

Greg’s plans to get through his senior year unnoticed soon fall apart. His mother tells him that his classmate Rachel Kushner was diagnosed with acute myelogenous leukemia and insists that he spend time with her. Greg begins calling and visiting Rachel who finds him amusing. Earl also befriends Rachel and shares his and Greg’s films with her because she enjoys them.

Rachel goes through chemotherapy, but eventually decides to end her treatment. After learning that Rachel likes Greg and Earl’s films, a fellow classmate named Madison suggests that they make a film for Rachel. The pair work hard on a film for Rachel, but they aren’t happy with the result. Despite their misgivings, Rachel encourages both Greg and Earl to apply to film school. Greg and Earl’s film for Rachel is presented to the entire high school without their permission. It’s a painful experience, and they independently destroy all their films.

Shortly after finishing the film, Rachel dies. Earl decides to give up on filmmaking. Greg has failed his classes and explains that he has written the book as an attempt to get back into the University of Pittsburgh.

The ending of the novel falls flat. Greg realizes that he barely knew Rachel, and that his film was more about him than her. In some ways, this is realistic. We sometimes appreciate people when it’s too late or fail to ask questions in a timely way. Still, I thought it was a shame that Greg showed so little growth throughout the story.

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We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

We’ll Always Have Summer (2011) by Jenny Han is the third novel in The Summer I Turned Pretty trilogy about Belly Conklin. Belly is now in college and has been dating Jeremiah Fisher for two years. Belly and Jeremiah get engaged, and their families are opposed to them marrying so young.

Jeremiah’s brother Conrad also has feeling for Belly, and he feels conflicted about supporting Belly and Jeremiah’s relationship. He wants to confess his true feelings for Belly.

It was hard to like Belly at times. She gets engaged to Jeremiah while she still has feelings for his brother. Meanwhile, Jeremiah and Conrad often seemed to be competing with one another for Belly, and I wasn't sure either one was truly in love with her. None of the characters are fully likable, but the series was still hard to put down.

Related Reviews:
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

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It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han

It's Not Summer Without You (2010) by Jenny Han is the second novel in The Summer I Turned Pretty series about Belly Conklin. At the beginning of the novel, the reader learns that Conrad and Belly have broken up and that Conrad and Jeremiah’s mother Susannah has died of cancer. Both the Fisher and Conklin families are grieving. Belly must face her first summer at home instead of at Cousins Beach.

Throughout the novel, Belly flashes back to moments from her relationship with Conrad and to Susannah’s illness and funeral. These events occurred during the year after The Summer I Turned Pretty. Several chapters are written from Jeremiah’s point of view.

Jeremiah calls Belly for help after his brother Conrad disappears from school. The pair find him at the summer house on Cousins Beach, and they try to convince Conrad to return to school. When Jeremiah confesses his feelings for Belly, she’s caught in a triangle between the two Fisher brothers.

Related Reviews:
The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han
We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

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The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han

The Summer I Turned Pretty (2009) by Jenny Han is a coming-of-age story about Isabel “Belly” Conklin. Belly is 15 years old. Every summer, Belly, her brother Steven, and their mother Laurel go to Cousins Beach where they stay with Laurel’s best friend Susannah and her two sons, Conrad and Jeremiah.

Belly has had a crush on Conrad for years, but he treats her like his kid sister. The three boys often do things together, and over the years, they have left Belly out. This year, Belly has grown up, and she thinks things will be different.

It is a different summer for Belly. The boys look at her in a new way. And Belly begins dating her first boyfriend Cameron.

The book chapters flit back and forth in time as Belly remembers events from past summers. The back and forth can be a bit confusing to read at times, and it was a bit sloppy. I think the author may have been confused by the timeline too. For instance, in Chapter 34, Belly talks about getting her period at age 13 at Putt Putt, but on the next page she wants to reclaim Putt Putt for her “twelve-year-old self.”

Nitpicking aside, the story is a fun, breezy read about adolescence and young love.

Related Reviews:
It's Not Summer Without You by Jenny Han
We'll Always Have Summer by Jenny Han

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The End of Me by Alfred Hayes

The End of Me (1968) is a novel by Alfred Hayes about a fifty-one-year-old man named Asher whose life has fallen apart. At the beginning of the novel, Asher witnesses his wife having an affair with a fellow tennis player. Asher is shattered and feels like howling. He returns to his house and decides to leave every light on and blazing instead of burning the house down. Then he leaves L.A. without telling his wife. Asher escapes to New York City where he was born and spent many years. He thinks,

"Thirty-five years. Yes. I'd given the city so much of my possible life. Surely, what was broken in me, the crippled sense of myself, would be restored. I'd heal among these brutal angles. I'd bathe in her like a spa. I'd convalesce in her indifferent arms."

He takes a room in a hotel with a view of Central Park, and watches the world from his window. Asher reflects on his life. He was once a successful screenwriter, but then as he grew older, Hollywood lost interest in him and doors closed on him. Asher describes it saying, "...the way the jobs disappeared, the people hanging up on the phone, the being turned into a ghost. They do that to you, you know: they ghostify you." He had two failed marriages and has no children. He thinks, "Well: apparently, what one ran out of was not mistakes, but the years to make them in."

When he walks around New York, he sees the changes in the city, reflecting:

"I'd walk slowly, I thought, and I would let the city come at me slowly. But New York does not come at you slowly. It isn't a landscape. It comes at you simultaneously. It is constantly existing at the periphery of your sight. You are almost always seeing at the very edge of what you see something else that you are still not seeing. I had always known this even when it was a different city and I had lived in it and was now trying to live in it again."

Asher visits his Aunt Dora, who mentions that her grandson Michael Bey wants to be a writer too. Asher meets Michael, who is a jaded, suspicious young man. Asher is rude to him, but later regrets his behavior. In his remorse, Asher hires Michael to walk around New York City with him to visit places that were significant in his past. Asher later wonders if he is trying to gain Michael’s approval, as though by sharing his history he will have a protégé.

Michael is dating a law student named Aurora d’Amore. Her name is ridiculously fake sounding, and Aurora is good at playing a wide-eyed innocent routine and "complicated games." Asher is attracted to her, and he jealously wonders what Aurora sees in Michael. When he’s with Aurora, Asher wishes he was still young.

Asher fails to see that Michael and Aurora are conniving and cruel. They gain Asher’s confidence to learn his deepest secrets, and they lie to him and humiliate him in profound ways. Asher is foolish, not realizing that that the pair is working to trick him and amuse themselves. At the novel’s conclusion, he reflects, "Everything went by. Nothing went by. I went by." Instead of finding a place to heal, Asher found more cruelty in New York. The End of Me is a tragic and cold story of loss, aging, generational conflict, ignorance, despair, and humiliation.

Related Reviews:
My Face for the World to See by Alfred Hayes
In Love by Alfred Hayes

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