To Paradise by Hanya Yanagihara

From the author of the classic A LITTLE LIFE, a bold, brilliant novel spanning three centuries and three different versions of the American experiment, about lovers, family, loss and the elusive promise of utopia. In an alternate version of 1893 America, New York is part of the Free States, where people may live and love whomever they please (or so it seems). The fragile young scion of a distinguished family resists betrothal to a worthy suitor, drawn to a charming music teacher of no means. In a 1993 Manhattan besieged by the AIDS epidemic, a young Hawaiian man lives with his much older, wealthier partner, hiding his troubled childhood and the fate of his father. And in 2093, in a world riven by plagues and governed by totalitarian rule, a powerful scientist's damaged granddaughter tries to navigate life without him--and solve the mystery of her husband's disappearances. These three sections are joined in an enthralling and ingenious symphony, as recurring notes and themes deepen and enrich one another: A townhouse in Washington Square Park in Greenwich Village; illness, and treatments that come at a terrible cost; wealth and squalor; the weak and the strong; race; the definition of family, and of nationhood; the dangerous righteousness of the powerful, and of revolutionaries; the longing to find a place in an earthly paradise, and the gradual realization that it can't exist. What unites not just the characters, but these Americas, are their reckonings with the qualities that make us human: Fear. Love. Shame. Need. Loneliness. TO PARADISE is a fin de siecle novel of marvelous literary effect, but above all it is a work of emotional genius. The great power of this remarkable novel is driven by Yanagihara's understanding of the aching desire to protect those we love - partners, lovers, children, friends, family and even our fellow citizens - and the pain that ensues when we cannot.

First, a synopsis:

There are three distinct books, each taking place 100 years apart: 1894, 1994, and 2094. The majority of the action happens in New York City – at least, a reimagined version of what it could be, or would be, in and alternate history (or real future, who tf knows).

In the first book, a young man of dynastic wealth lives in New York, which is the capital of the Free States, which have seceded from both The Colonies (what we know of as the South) and The West (CA, WA, OR, and uncharted territory). In the Free States, citizens are encouraged to marry regardless of sex, and homosexual relationships are just as common (and often, practical and loveless) as hetero ones. The young man, David, falls in love, and has to choose between continuing to live a sheltered life under the protection of his grandfather, or risk it all for the man he loves.

In the second book, a young paralegal with ties to Hawaiian royalty in New York is dating the partner at this firm that is twice his age in the height of the AIDS epidemic. He has all but considered his father dead when he receives a letter from him at an emotionally vulnerable time that exposes a fascinating and painful family history.

In the third book, regular pandemics and global warming have turned New York into an authoritarian nightmare that a young neurodiverse woman is forced to navigate on her own following the death of her grandfather.

Next, my feelings:

I predict this is going to be a divisive book; either you love it, or you DNF (it is not for the faint of heart!). I loved it.

After each book, I had to pause and contemplate what I just read – both to relive the joy of having read it, but also to unpack the complex ties and more nuanced plot points, and their significance. Each book is so consuming, that while the memories of the past book echo in silky vestiges throughout, I was afraid I would forget the prior book as I became enveloped in the world of the subsequent story.

The second part of Book 2 lost me a little (in that I think it was about twice as long as it needed to be) and it took a while to work into Book 3, I think because of the narrator and the stark scene of near-apocalyptic New York – but it paid off to stick with it, because Book 3 comes back to hit hard at the end. Book 1 still comes out as my favorite, though, and I'm so impressed with the author's ability to write so convincingly like a late-19th century writer would.

It's so tempting to believe that each of these stories are in the same world, and are maybe even part of the same story – but that's not a clean interpretation. This book resists clear connections and clean interpretations, and I LOVE IT. This is major book-club fodder for lit nerds.

Each book deals with powerful themes that transcend 300 years: how radicalization is born; our most passionate attempts to protect the ones we love, and the pain that comes with realizing it is impossible to do so; and, of course, our unending quest for paradise.

Precise rating: 4.5 ⭐

How lucky I am to have been able to start the year with such a life-changing novel!

Three books linked thematically (companionship, identity, family, happiness) plus some shared motifs (mostly character and place names), but otherwise quite different in genre and structure. I really enjoyed the third book, a dystopian novel set in NY after a series of devastating pandemics. I like Yanagihara's prose; something about it holds my attention very well.