G. W. Hawkes

A gentle story of veteran buddies who accepted a post-college job with a rather shady foundation and have spent 30 years in New Mexico, drawing maps and banking a salary, never quite sure why they are doing this job. In one summer, their privacy is invaded by a team of archaeologists, a young film maker building a fake town to record as it is flooded in the fall rains, and a second young woman who seems to just hang about. Deeply suspicious of the newcomers, Paul and John's life begins to show cracks. Beautiful.… (mer)

I am sad and sorry that this remarkable book has only 8 members listing it on LT.

Paul Merline and John Suope have been mapping a small part of the New Mexico desert since the 1950s, working for a Foundation that has never told them what it wants the information for. They believe that they know everything there is to know about their patch of desert - and subconsciously, Merline at least believes he knows all there is to know about himself and his partner.

But recently, new characters have disturbed their routine - archaeologists pulling prehistoric remains out of the earth, and a film student knocking together a jerry-built townscape as part of her graduation project. The different perspectives that the newcomers bring make the landscape shift under the surveyors' feet - and their different reactions to the changes lead Merline to realise that his understanding of his partner, and himself, are equally shallowly rooted.

The book is rich with layers of metaphor, but at the same time, the story draws you in, and stands on its own.

Sample: The delicate ratio of human to empty square mile has crossed an invisible threshold and like cargo shifting in a poorly loaded freighter promises only disaster.… (mer)

My favorite of Hawkes's novels. Tender and effortlessly spot-on, it's a lovely exploration of its concept. Joseph, the point-of-view character, is mute--for reasons medical science is unable to explain--and can not only see the future, but experiences it. The novel is about how Joseph comes to understand his ability and how he learns to live despite his knowledge of what is to come. Hawkes wastes no time trying to explain how Joseph got to be the way he is, but we buy the set-up because of his deft characterization. This is my second or third reread and I'm always impressed by the seeming ease with which Hawkes puts Joseph on the page. Recommended.… (mer)