American Character: The Curious Life of Charles Fletcher Lummis and the Rediscovery of the Southwest by Mark Thompson (review)

Bo o k r ev i ews 129 o f a n in fa n t r y figh t so n g fu ll o f t h e o v e r b lo w n , jin g o ist ic la n g u a g e h is n a r r a t o r is st r u gglin g a g a in st a n d le a n s t o o h a r d o n w e ll- w o r n so n g ly r ics fr o m C o u n t r y Jo e a n d t h e F ish as c h a p t e r e p igr a p h s. H e a lso p e p p e r s t h e p r o se w it h m e a n ­ in gle ss in t e r t e x t u a l r e fe r e n c e s, lik e th is o n e r iffin g o n H e n r y R e e d ’s fa m o u s p o e m “ N a m in g o f P a r t s”: “ I n t h e c la ssr o o m I c o n t in u e d t o b e d ist r a c t e d .. . .Yet t h e in st r u c t o r d r o n e d o n , n a m in g t h e p ar t s. ‘A n d h e r e w e h a v e t h e u p p e r slin g sw iv e l’” (4 0 ). B u t t h e n o v e l so o n m o v e s b e y o n d t h e se flaw s. Bu sb y c a p t u r e s t h e in t e n se (o ft e n in t e n se ly r id ic u lo u s) t r a in in g r e gim e n y o u n g Je ff A d a m s is su b je c t e d to . B o t h t h e n a n a t o r a n d t h e a u t h o r cle a r ly r e c ­ o gn ize t h e lu d ic r o u s n at u r e o f a sc h o o l b e n t o n fe e d in g a fa ilin g w ar m a c h in e . A d a m s h a s e n t e r e d in t o a se c lu d e d w o r ld , lit e r a lly a n d figu r a tiv ely , m ile s fr o m h is fam ily a n d h is h o m e in T e x a s. H is iso la t io n is fu r t h e r in t e n sifie d b y t h e M y L a i in c id e n t , so m e t h in g h e o n ly h e a r s sn a t c h e s o f in h is g r a n d fa t h e r ’s le t t e r s a n d g lim p se s in n e w sp a p e r h e a d lin e s a t t h e fo r t . T h e w o r ld o f V ie t n am - W a r e r...