Basically, this novel is the story of four children from a middle-class Jewish family in New York who sneak out one day to visit a fortune-teller who gives each of them the exact date on which their lives will end. The book then follows each of the four in separate sections, as they cope with the knowledge. All, one way or another, choose life paths that are informed by their level of belief in the prophecies.
Benjamin never really tackles the notion of predestination versus free will, nor does she attempt to prove or disprove the fortune-teller's gift. She simply follows these four very different personalities who came up through the same family but responded to its influences in very different ways.
Klara, the younger daughter, expresses her individuality by studying sleight-of-hand magic, and strikes out for San Francisco shortly after her father's death, searching for the fabled Summer of Love, but arriving as it has faded into a darker, sadder shadow of itself.
Simon, the baby of the family, goes with her, almost on a whim, and discovers his own sexuality in the free-wheeling gay community of the 80s, already being stalked by a mysterious disease that will change things forever.
Daniel, the firstborn son, seems to have put the prophecy behind him as he makes his way down the most conservative path -- college, a medical degree, and marriage. But a professional crisis and a run-in with a figure from the family's past, plunges him into a crusade he never sought.
And Varya, the eldest, the one whose future was predicted to stretch farthest of all, dedicates her career to the study of longevity, but forgets how to live along the way.
Each section has its own strengths and weaknesses. Daniel's seems the most unlikely and was the least satisfying, at least to me, and Varya's choices were utterly heartbreaking. Her story was also weakened by what seemed a most unlikely coincidence.
But all in all, it's an interesting premise and an entertaining read.
Benjamin never really tackles the notion of predestination versus free will, nor does she attempt to prove or disprove the fortune-teller's gift. She simply follows these four very different personalities who came up through the same family but responded to its influences in very different ways.
Klara, the younger daughter, expresses her individuality by studying sleight-of-hand magic, and strikes out for San Francisco shortly after her father's death, searching for the fabled Summer of Love, but arriving as it has faded into a darker, sadder shadow of itself.
Simon, the baby of the family, goes with her, almost on a whim, and discovers his own sexuality in the free-wheeling gay community of the 80s, already being stalked by a mysterious disease that will change things forever.
Daniel, the firstborn son, seems to have put the prophecy behind him as he makes his way down the most conservative path -- college, a medical degree, and marriage. But a professional crisis and a run-in with a figure from the family's past, plunges him into a crusade he never sought.
And Varya, the eldest, the one whose future was predicted to stretch farthest of all, dedicates her career to the study of longevity, but forgets how to live along the way.
Each section has its own strengths and weaknesses. Daniel's seems the most unlikely and was the least satisfying, at least to me, and Varya's choices were utterly heartbreaking. Her story was also weakened by what seemed a most unlikely coincidence.
But all in all, it's an interesting premise and an entertaining read.
