Bonfire of the Vanities

Is a white life worth more than a black life?

This is one the of the central questions purposed by Tom Wolfe's first fictional novel. In a nutshell, it's about a rich Wall Street guy who gets lost in Bronx one evening while driving a lover, who he's having an affair with, home from the airport. While lost, they are stopped at an freeway on-ramp and jumped by two kids from the projects. They get away, but not before running over one of the kids and sending him to the hospital in critical condition. The story slowly unveils the legal and social consequences of these actions and it's extremely compelling to watch it all unfold.

My only beef with this book is that Wolfe tends to ramble on about every piece of detail to every new scene or setting or character. It is poetic and great writing (plus it does its job at educating the reader of wide spread of social classes that exists in the 1980's New York), but  it does wear on me. As David Grohl explained about writing a hit song, "Don't bore us, get to the chorus!" Not sure if this says I only really enjoy reading soulless dribble, but I do find it easier to keep engaged with a story when the author doesn't sidetrack for five pages explaining the details to sun-bleached pavement besides the city's projects  or the mahogany siding to a Wall Street tycoon's Park Avenue Xanadu. It feels like Wolfe's story here could have been cut down to half of its size if this attention to detail was removed, but, then again, this detail probably carries all the information needed to understand the turmoil that exists in New York's social and economical segregation. 

By the end of the book you come to learn that the question brought up at the beginning (which life is worth more?) is really the least important aspect to consider when viewing this crazy society. Wolfe has this very bleak - almost comedic - view of New York's humanity in that no one is ever really that innocent. People are greedy, selfish, deceitful, violent, and just plain stupid at times. And, most importantly,  even a nonviolent, seemingly peaceful person can turned to a angry, dangerous beast when put into the right circumstances. 

I have two more books on my shelf from Tom Wolfe. A Man in Full and The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test (the second being adapted into a movie next year). Although I did like this Bonfire of the Vanities and can understand why it will forever remain a modern classic, I'm not chomping at the bit to dig into another Wolfe novel anytime soon. I'll get to these other books when I get to them... but I will get to them.