So, now that the life has calmed down, the tornado of thoughts that swirled through my head has settled, and the dust is clearing.

And, now I remember what the point of my cultural graffiti post (see below – what the heck was my point?) was going to be – it was supposed to be a book review singing the praises of Let the Great World Spin, by Colum McCann, easily the best book I read this year.  Oh yeah, that’s what I really wanted to talk about . . .

And what does Let the Great World Spin have to do with cultural graffiti, my theory about spray painting crap on top of art (Sea Monsters swimming in Bath in Jane Austen), or crap on top of crap (Matt Damon’s endless voiceover in The Informant) as the case may be – Let the Great World Spin is a richly layered novel, that dispenses with gimmicks and writer tricks, creating a story set in 1974 that easily could be lifted and transposed onto 2009 – timelessness isn’t a trick, it’s writing that transcends – lifting the subtance above the story, rather than burying it under guck.

Let the Great World Spin takes place during the course of one day in 1974, when Philip Petit danced and romped joyously on a tightrope strung between the Twin Towers, with intersecting stories of the lives of ordinary people – drug addled prostitutes, mothers mourning sons, an immigrant priest, among others – who all experience a moment that makes them extraordinary.  And this moment — whether it be a moment of love or loss -  is a moment brimming with extraordinary humanity.  This story, that draws from Watergate, Vietnam, and the counterculture of the 70′s, is a mirror of our younger, American selves – it’s about how the past informs the present, and as Esquire Magazine put it, it’s “the first great 9/11 novel,” and tells us more about that day, than any book that actually tries to describe that day or strives to tell a 9/11 story. 

Anyway, so I must thank Oprah – you are now forgiven for those disgusting Turkey burgers – Oprah spread the word about this book through a free e-book giveaway (love my Kindle!!!!), and after the Turkey burgers, it would have to be free, because Oprah endorsements had gone sour for me.  Oprah, you are redeemed, because this book was truly a gift.