My Korean Deli: Risking It All for a Convenience Store

A rough start - I don't know why approaching it as a novel instead of a memoir threw me off. The thought of a Boston bred, liberal arts WASP working at the Paris Review with George Plimpton while taking ownership of a faltering Brooklyn deli with Korean immigrant in-laws felt too contrived, heavy handed almost.

Thankfully he handles the two worlds with a light hand and I began settling into the narrative. “Truth” is stranger than fiction and the memoir moniker extended author Ben Howe bit of slack. I enjoyed his brand of navel gazing and digression that avoided veering too far into wry, hand-wringing New Yorker.