The Great Believers

At its heart it about the Aids epidemic in the 80's specifically in Chicago and how it decimated that community. The trick is how Makkai manages to show so many different facets to the story. It avoids being one-note and I never felt like some voyeuristic tourist chaperoned by a voluble tourguide shouting about all the interesting gays! It also steers clear of being pure misery porn as well.

The 2015 timeline with Fiona looking for her daughter in Paris allows us to reflect on the 80's from the perspective of a caregiver. But the story didn't quite gel and it felt almost cruel to know that this women who cared so deeply for these men dying of AIDs would end up alienating her own child as a result. And we also get memories of an artist commune in Paris of the 20's which adds a bit of gallery acquisition thriller in the middle.

I guess it's just this weird theme of the excitement of living in a moment with these larger than life figures with all the attendant beauty and tragedy but how it leaves its mark on the next generation. The disconnect with Nora wanting to preserve her memories at the expense of her children who are shown as petty and small-minded, or Fiona's love for the men of boystown throwing a long shadow over her own daughter's understanding of maternal love. It's a lot to pack into a book and it started to feel shaggy around the edges. If it sometimes misses the mark, it still manages to stay a compelling read.