The Bird Saviors by William J. Cobb

Published by Unbridled Books on June 12, 2012 

The Bird Saviors defies categorization. It is in part a crime novel about "a low-life splinter group of fundamentalist types who see this as the end times," a point of view that provides a convenient justification for ripping off the government, big business, and other sinners. It is in part a love story, in part a family drama on the order of HBO's Big Love, in small part a science fiction story that imagines a modern plague. The plot of The Bird Saviors also defies spoiler-free description. Perhaps an introduction to the characters will give a flavor of what this innovative novel has to offer.

A deadly fever has swept the country, carried by birds. Few people who reach an advanced stage recover. One who does survive is seventeen-year-old Ruby Cole. Born a hick, Ruby is one of the few characters in The Bird Saviors who aspires to be something more than a high school dropout. Ruby has a baby named Lila. Ruby's controlling and delusional father is John Wesley Cole, known to Ruby as Lord God (so named because of his rants about wickedness). Lord God is a veteran with a prosthetic leg who believes himself to be a conduit between the tangible and spiritual worlds. Hiram Page, who already has two wives, would like to make Ruby his third. Page is a pawnshop owner who supplements his income with criminal enterprises.

Collateral characters -- for the most part, a motley collection of losers and misfits -- include: Hiram's cousin Jack Brown, who wants to pawn a diamond ring he gave to Becca Cisneros before she ended their engagement; Elray James, the Pueblo, Colorado law enforcement officer who deals with the disturbance caused by Brown's attempt to take the ring back from Cisneros; George Armstrong Crowfoot, a Department of Animal Control officer, unconventional artist, and part-time cattle rustler who helps out Cisneros at James' request; Hiram's nephew Ezra Page, who has a run-in with Crowfoot over Cisneros; Ezra's friend Mosca, who won a shrunken head in a card game and is sure it is the head of an infamous outlaw; and ornithologist Ward Costello, who is studying declining bird populations. Costello needs someone to count birds. Ruby considers herself perfect for the job since counting birds is her hobby.

The Bird Saviors explores a number of interesting themes. Is it important to be extraordinary? Costello thinks he isn't. He harbors a secret desire to be a bird savior rather than a bird counter. He'd like to find the Lord God Bird, a woodpecker that may well be extinct. The novel's other Lord God views a Barn Owl as an omen, a portent of doom, and he puts himself at risk to help the kind of person he usually despises. Costello and Lord God could not be more different yet they have something in common beyond their mutual belief (based on science in one case and superstition in the other) that dwindling bird populations are a sign of things to come. Perhaps (the novel might be saying) people often fail to recognize their extraordinary gifts. Perhaps people who are ordinary, and even people who are damaged, are capable of extraordinary acts.

The characters are surprisingly complex. Those who behave badly are often troubled by a conscience; those who seem evil often have a heart. We see the characters differently as the novel shows them to us through the eyes of others and then through their own eyes. The story bleeds primal emotions; characters are driven by anger and greed and occasionally by love. For all their complexity, William J. Cobb has the wonderful ability to summarize his characters in a few choice phrases.

Cobb's crisp prose moves the story forward at a rapid pace. His images of hardscrabble lifestyles are as sharp as finely focused photographs. Some readers will probably be troubled by the absence of quotation marks but it's a clean style to which I quickly adapted. The dialog is, in fact, one of the novel's strengths. It perfectly reflects the characters' rough-and tumble lives.

In the end, the storylines don't cohere as well as one might hope. Some threads are left dangling and the narrative doesn't quite live up to its potential. I'm not sure what to make of the fever; its inclusion seems out of place. These quibbles are relatively minor, however, compared to the pleasure I took in reading about these remarkable, unconventional characters.

RECOMMENDED

Istanbul Passage by Joseph Kanon

Published by Atria Books on May 29, 2012

Set in 1945, Istanbul Passage tells an absorbing story that builds suspense like a Hitchcock movie. The novel rests upon a storyline that was a favorite of Hitchcock's: the (relatively) innocent man caught up in an intrigue he did not anticipate, forced to use his wits to avoid arrest or death. As is often the case in spy novels, themes of betrayal and moral ambiguity in a changing world pervade Istanbul Passage. The temptation and motivation to betray touches every important character.

Leon Bauer (American) is married to Anna (German) who is bedridden with a mysterious ailment. Leon works for R.J. Reynolds in Istanbul but does a bit of spying for Tommy King (Office of War Information) on the side. Tommy is pulling out of the city, leaving Leon to take delivery of a post-war defector named Alexei (Romanian) who is smuggled into Turkey by boat. The handover does not go smoothly. Hours later, in an early plot twist, Leon discovers that people he trusted are not on his side.

Leon learns Alexei's true identity from Mihai, a Mossad agent who believes Alexei to be a butcher, a killer of Jews (an accusation that Alexei denies). Mihai, the only person Leon trusts, refuses to help Alexei. In fact, he argues that it is no longer ethical for Leon to help Alexei gain his freedom. Leon thus confronts a dilemma. Alexei might be evil, but there are degrees of evil, and Alexei's role in the war is unclear. Alexei may be able to provide valuable Russian military intelligence to the Americans. Is it better to hand Alexei over to the Russians so that he can be executed (which might seem a just punishment for his alleged actions during the war) or to give him a pass for his wartime behavior in exchange for the information he claims to possess? Leon stands uncomfortably in the middle of this Hobson's choice, a position that becomes even less comfortable when the Turkish secret police take an interest in Leon's involvement with Alexei. Compounding Leon's problems is a mole whose identity is not revealed until the novel's end.

The revelation of the mole's identity is mildly surprising thanks to deft misdirection. Leon's moment of truth is a highlight in a book filled with scenes that make an impact.  Despite the moderately complex plot that brings together a number of carefully drawn characters, Joseph Kanon maintains a deliberate and gradually escalating pace.

Istanbul Passage raises fascinating ethical issues. When Mihai argues that the actions of people struggling for survival can't be judged by others who weren't in their shoes, he fails to understand that the same logic might apply to his judgment of Alexei. How should the reader view Alexei? He seems unremorsefully selfish yet he is capable of self-sacrifice. He is a Romanian who allied with Germany when Germany seemed to be prevailing, then switched his allegiance to Russia, and now seeks an alliance with the Americans. Other Romanians see him as a traitor, Mihai considers him a war criminal, but in the end, Alexei may simply be a man who tried to stay alive.

At the same time, how should the reader view Leon? As a devoted husband, he wants to help his wife but lacks the funds to do so. As a man who is attracted to women, he finds it difficult to resist advances. Leon is probably the most morally stalwart character in the book but he is no stranger to temptation. He wants to do the right thing but in the end he comes to understand that there is no right thing. And since nothing he can do will change the past, the question that confounds him is how to behave in the present.

Kanon manages to generate excitement without endless explosions and car chases. Action scenes are rare but riveting. Kanon writes dialog that is both realistic and smart. His characters are artfully constructed. Leon, of course, is the most fully developed. The reader is privy to his disjointed thoughts, often triggered by something he hears or sees but disconnected from his present environment. Strong characterizations combined with suspense, emotional intensity and ethical ambiguity make Istanbul Passage a standout spy novel.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

This Perfect Day by Ira Levin

First published in 1970 (digital version distributed by Open Road Media)

In the future that Ira Levin envisions, the world has been unified, lasting peace has been achieved, and poverty has been erased. Guns and prisons exist only as museum exhibits. Of course, this comes with a cost. "Members" of this worldwide family wear bracelets that are connected to UniComp, the computer that controls their lives. By touching their bracelets to every scanner they pass, UniComp always knows where they are. It decides whether and whom they will wed, what they will name their kids, where they live and work, and when they will have sex (Saturday nights for ten minutes). Genetic manipulation assures that, with each passing generation, members grow to look more and more alike, assuring ultimate conformity.

A kid (nicknamed Chip by a grandfather who still believes in individuality) is concerned about his grandfather's desire to exercise free will -- a sure sign of sickness that needs to be treated. His grandfather encourages Chip to want something ... anything. Despite his grandfather's transfer to a place far away, Chip still thinks about the concept of choice and wonders what it would be like to choose his own career, although his mild desire to do so vanishes after the monthly "treatment" that each member receives. Of course, once he reaches age 14 and UniComp assigns him a sex partner, it's difficult for Chip to think about anything else. The novel follows Chip into early adulthood, when he comes to understand his grandfather's wisdom.

Dystopian ideas, echoes of Nineteen Eighty-Four and Brave New World, abound in This Perfect Day. Via UniComp, the government controls the media. Tranquilizers assure that the population remains docile while other drugs suppress the sex drive. Aggression and passion are diseases. When someone fails to conform or even expresses a nonconforming thought, members who notice will snitch in the belief that they are helping the nonconformist achieve better health. Any hint of individuality is considered selfish -- after all, if there are too many artists and not enough plumbers, all of society suffers. Death as the age of 62 is regarded as natural; it never occurs to members that a longer lifespan is possible.

The plot differs from Nineteen Eighty-Four and other dystopian tomes, however, in its focus on Chip's effort to unravel the past, a task that requires him to translate books published in French and Italian before Unification imposed a common language -- before UniComp took control of the literary world. His work leads to a more familiar theme: the search for others who value freedom over conformity, for a place in the world that remains untouched by Unification. Ironically, when Chip finds such a place, he learns that oppression takes many forms, that freedom may be an illusion, just another instrument of control.

As the story evolves, it takes the guise of an action-adventure story before it twists and, toward the end, returns to its philosophical roots. It reminds us that in any conformist society, there are two kinds of nonconformists: those who rebel against the system and those are privileged to control it. It also reminds us how easy it is to be seduced and co-opted by power and the relative luxury it brings.

Some aspects of This Perfect Day are amusing but ring true. Rebellious members are particularly motivated to free others from tranquilizing drugs so that they can enjoy more frequent and better sex. Even after being freed from the drugs, members are discomforted by the possibility of violence and chaos inherent in free will. There are advantages to being comfortably numb, to living a decision-free life. Freedom has its costs, including anxiety and stress. Many will inevitably prefer the drugs.

This Perfect Day is a product of its time. It takes an obvious shot at Marxism, an ideology that seemed more threatening in 1970 than it does today. The concept of "from each according to his ability, to each according to his need" is carried to an extreme, with the government (via UniComp) deciding what each person needs and what each should give. Although the notion of a single computer in a single location controlling everything that UniComp controls probably seemed more realistic in 1970 than it does today, the story stands up well. It continues to be a relevant celebration of individualism and free thought. Its significance aside, This Perfect Day tells a good story.

RECOMMENDED

The Winemaker by Noah Gordon

Published in Spanish in 2007; digitally published in translation by Barcelona eBooks on June 5, 2012 (distributed by Open Road Media); print edition scheduled for publication in September 2012

The intersection of wine and literature is a fine place to rest. The Winemaker will appeal to those who like a good story and to those who appreciate a good glass of wine. Those who love both wine and literature might place The Winemaker on their annual list of favorite reads. It will certainly be on mine.

After four years working in the vineyard and barrel room of a vintner in Languedoc, Josep Alvarez has developed an appreciation of fine wine that he could never have imagined growing up on his father's farm in Catalonia, where grapes are grown to produce vinegar and wine that tastes like horse piss. When he learns that his father has died, Josep decides to return home, hoping that he is not being pursued by the Spanish authorities. Initially, we know only that Josep joined the Carlist militia in 1870 and that he later left Spain, but we don't know why. Returning to his village, he discovers that his brother, Donat, is living in Barcelona and wants to sell the farm. Josep buys it and settles in, content to own "a slice of Spain," to use the knowledge he acquired in France to revitalize the neglected vineyard. Climbing a hill on the property and discovering hundred year old Garnacha vines, he begins to wonder whether it might be possible to produce grapes suitable for something more palatable than vinegar.

Part two tells how Josep became a soldier for lack of other options. In part three, having discovered that his duties as a soldier were other than what he expected, Josep struggles to make his way into the world. Part four returns to the present (1874) as Josep pursues his new life as a winemaker. Part five (beginning in 1876) completes a journey of self-discovery as Josep learns to embrace the pleasures of a simple life while resisting his neighbors' urges to be satisfied with its limitations.

While there is satisfying drama in the growing of grapes, Noah Gordon finds things for Josep to do that heighten the story's tension, from chasing a wild boar to the odd but dangerous sport of castell-building. Josep owes a debt to his brother that creates family discord. Even the mysterious relationship between Josep's neighboring farmer and the village priest adds dramatic interest to the story. When Josep's brief militia experience comes back to threaten him toward the novel's end, the story gains a layer of political intrigue without devolving into a cheap thriller. It also becomes a tale of turmoil as Josep realizes that he was manipulated by a friend.

The Winemaker is a novel of relationships and personal growth rather than action and suspense. Gordon also wedges in a love story, as Josep pursues romance (and/or sex) in a village where options are severely limited. As the story unfolds, the reader wonders about Josep's feelings for Teresa Gallego, the girl he left behind when he entered the militia, whose life he fears was ruined by his failure to return to her.

Gordon captures the place and time in his vibrant descriptions of mills and barrel makers and horse-drawn carts. He convincingly recreates sleepy, gossipy village life. The Winemaker treats readers to a brief history of Spanish land reform and civil strife during the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Of greater significance to wine lovers, the novel provides a unique glimpse of winemaking on a small nineteenth century Spanish farm. Gordon writes lovingly of the hardships of winemakers who are at the mercy of weather, pests, rotting vats and fickle soils. The description of the final stages of wine production -- the experimentation required to produce the perfect blend of varietals -- is fascinating. Wine lovers will certainly admire this novel, but I think most fans of character-driven fiction will enjoy it as well.

HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

The Bourne Imperative by Eric Van Lustbader

Published by Grand Central Publishing on June 5, 2012 

"She took another long drag from her cigarillo, which emitted smoke like a just-fired pistol." If this is the kind of sentence you love to read (and I can't believe it is), The Bourne Imperative is the book for you. It is packed with similar silliness.

Jason Bourne fishes a fellow out of the water who speaks multiple languages but remembers nothing about his life, including his own name. Did Jason Bourne catch another Jason Bourne? That would be quite a coincidence, but so is the fact that Bourne happens to be boating in the same Swedish archipelago where the nameless man is being pursued by rogue Mossad super-agent Rebeka, whose life Bourne saved in The Bourne Dominion. The nameless man knows about some nefarious doings of Mossad in Dahr El Ahmar, but he can't remember what he knows. Bourne's larger concern is super-terrorist Nicodemo who seems to be a clandestine player in Core Energy, a company that is trying to corner the market on rare earths. Rebeka's larger concern should be Ilan Halevy, "the Babylonian," who has been commissioned to kill her (among others) by Mossad. An alliance between yet another rogue Mossad agent and a Minister of the Chinese government adds an additional layer of convolution to this messy plot.

Meanwhile, back at Treadstone, a new boy named Richard Richards is keeping an eye on co-directors Saroya Moore and Peter Marks, reporting directly to the president. A subplot involves Saroya's pregnancy, political reporter Charles Thorne, the senator to whom he is married, and Maceo Encarnacion, the president of a shadowy internet security firm,. Another involves Martha Christiana, whose contract to assassinate Don Fernando is complicated by her deep feelings for him. You need a large scorecard and a fistful of colored markers to keep track of all the betrayals as the various plotlines unfold.

The clutter of characters and the novel's form -- jumping rapidly from scene to scene so the reader can watch as the action progresses on several fronts -- is about all this novel has in common with the original Bourne trilogy. As you might expect given Eric Van Lustbader's production of a new, lengthy Bourne novel every year, The Bourne Imperative has the feel of having been hurriedly written. Van Lustbader takes shortcuts, relying on stock characters and clichéd phrases to prop up the story. The Babylonian is almost a cartoon villain, the Incredible Hulk on steroids. Action/fight scenes, of which there are many, are so unimaginative, and rendered in such bland language, that they create no adrenalin rush. Some of the scenes that take place in Mexico read as if they were belong in a cheesy Mexican soap opera.

Apart from being entirely too dependent upon coincidence, The Bourne Imperative too often asks the reader not just to suspend disbelief, but to believe the impossible. For instance, the latest excuse to kill Bourne concerns "a top secret Mossad camp ... harboring even more top secret research" that Bourne happens to have encountered. We all know that Bourne is an amazing guy, but in this novel he seems to have acquired x-ray vision. How else would he know that there are "experiments going on" inside a building he flew over in a helicopter just by looking at the outside of the building?

To be fair, the story, stripped to its essence, isn't half bad, and the scheme involving the Mossad agent and the Chinese minister includes a clever twist. Still, the plot seems like a patchwork, something cobbled together from bits and pieces torn from a dozen other thrillers. Regrettably, it is built upon the worst excesses of action-based thrillers. The ending is just preposterous. I'm prepared to accept preposterous for the sake of a good thriller, but this one isn't.

NOT RECOMMENDED