In this installment of Page 69,
We put Brian Jacobson's The Truth About the Moon and the Stars to the test!
OK, Brian, set up page 69 for us.
Page 69
features the story’s eighteen-year-old protagonist, Shane, getting dressed up
to break into his ex-friend’s family home. His mission is to retrieve a beloved
prank call CD from his youth, The Ball Busters II-No Hang Ups. It is
lost on Shane that he is cultivating the look of a Halloween burglar costume.
What is The Truth About the Moon and the Stars about:
I’d say The Truth About the Moon and the
Stars is about arrested
development and haphazard, unintended occult initiation. Shane is a high school
dropout who lives alone in the house of his recently deceased parents. While
his peers are graduating high school and getting ready to head off to college,
Shane spends his time engaging in anti-social hobbies like Chinese buffet
brawls, Beanie Baby Heists and endless hours of prank calls. These activities
lead Shane to discover a mysterious senior citizen, George. As Shane’s
obsession with George grows, he finds himself hurled down a phantasmagorical
rabbit hole that he isn’t prepared for.
Do you think
this page gives our readers an accurate sense of what the novel is about? Does
it align itself the novel’s theme?
It absolutely
aligns itself with the theme of arrested development. This page is a nice little snapshot of Shane
at the beginning of the story. It gives the reader a glimpse into his
obsessiveness, his proclivity toward transgressive situations, and his lack of
self-awareness.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
PAGE 69
THE TRUTH ABOUT TH EMOON AND THE STARS
In the
living room, Boyz II Men are singing “Motown Philly” on BET. As Boyz II Men
demonstrate their Philly street style—pastel button-down shirts, matching khaki
short outfits, matching bowtie outfits, cheesesteaks, lip-synching in front of
a giant birthday cake, synchronized dance moves with canes—it occurs to me that
David’s house might be empty right now. The fun, out-on-the-town vibe of the
video jolts a memory; David’s parents used to go out religiously on Saturday
nights. They probably still do. David and his sister are probably out as well.
They both have lots of friends and it’s the last month of high school. I can’t
believe that such a basic detail didn’t occur to me during any of my recent
brainstorming sessions.
I call his
house, hoping nobody will answer. Jackpot! I still don’t have a concrete plan,
but if the house is truly empty, I won’t really need one.
I leave
the TV on, wander upstairs to change. “Motown Philly” floats up to my bedroom
as I sift through my closet for a black sweatshirt, black jeans, and a ski
mask. Back-to-back Boyz II Men continues to serenade me as I slip into my
chosen evening attire.
All
dressed, I laugh at the masked man in the mirror. I fish through the closet for
a crowbar while reminiscing about my favorite Ballbusters calls. There was the
impatient deaf guy doing a survey. How can I forget the saucy rich prick who
harassed a Rolls Royce dealership? I look myself over once more and decide that
I’m ready to head downstairs.
Boyz II
Men grow louder as I slide down the banister. I try to remember how far away
David’s house is as I grab the keys. Should take about five minutes this time
of night.
Brian Jacobson was born in 1981 and raised outside of
Boston. He is a graduate of Emerson College and lives in Portland, Oregon. The
Truth About the Moon and the Stars is his first novel.
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