Long-standing Thomas McGuane readers will relish his newest work Driving on the Rim because it has all the ingredients of a vintage McGuane cocktail: a dysfunctional protagonist whose unusual family history and own perambulations leave him high and dry, a late middle-aged man functioning once again as his own worst enemy, a character who faces disgrace and a potential murder rap with a kind of hapless insouciance. There is the alluring vixen and accomplice who take advantage of our said narrator, the familiar vistas of Montana's wondrous landscape- beautifully conveyed, the snowballing collective force of negative small town judgement and its accompanying enmity, and as always, beautiful evocation prose, strong verbal wit. The restorative capacity of nature to heal one's wounds in the face of trying human interaction, as in all of McGuane's books, is again a powerful and compelling force in this book.
McGuane's writing has never been stronger. In his earliest works, his testosterone fuelled writing came at you like 110 mph fastballs, one zany supercharged moment after another. Years ago, I read once in Time magazine where Saul Bellow even described him as a "language star." But now and really for a long time, McGuane has been a finesse pitcher, one whose writing moves beautifully through description and dialogue, through humour to moments of startling clarity, deprecation, even sadness . McGuane's characters always have lots of insight into themselves, and the author spares no precious pixels in presenting them here.
For that very reason, though, I could see someone not liking this book. There really isn't a lot for the reader to do except sit back and be entertained, stimulated. All of Dr. Berl Pickett's actions are dissected with brilliant perceptive analysis as the events unfold. Literally as they unfold. In this sense, the book is a little like an all-inclusive luxury resort- you just sit back and enjoy the ride without really having to lift an analytical mental finger. Everything was covered at the bookstore counter. There is even a disclaimer at the beginning that tells you how to take it- "with a grain of salt."
I liked the book, however. It reminded somewhat of Pete Dexter's recent book Spooner- the memoir of another middle-aged fellow, but on the whole, I would not hesitate to recommend it.