Book Review: "Pageant of the Masters"
by Steven Belletto
I think this book should be titled “A Master of Character,” because that’s how superb the characters are who fill Steven Belletto’s latest book PAGEANT OF THE MASTERS. His dry, witty style, yet keen observation of the human condition feels so much like Raymond Carver.
But unlike that great storyteller, who often chose New York or suburban New York settings in which the educated and middle- and well-to-do experienced their personal implosions through the mundane of everyday life, every single one of these stories features places and people so real, I’m sure they actually exist somewhere. From a young and haunted soul-searcher in Bhutan to a Los Angeles woman who thinks she can turn her West Hollywood art gallery staff into a reality show, to dueling artists in the jungle of Gautemala.
The way they dress and the mannerisms they use and how they talk wrapped me in their worlds and bound me to their personal struggles. One of the most powerful in the collection was “To the Lakehouse” in which a failing baby photographer falls apart from the lies he’s told himself, yet he can’t see himself falling apart.
An amazing collection.
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SCATTERED LIGHT, a novel, sequel to WINTER LIGHT
THE FALCON, THE WOLF AND THE HUMMINGBIRD a historical novel
BLISS ROAD, a memoir
WINTER LIGHT, a novel, in paperback and audiobook
THE WIND THIEF, a novel
GROWING GREAT CHARACTERS, a resource for writers
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