Preps with Oars

  I just finished Ron Irwin's fine debut novel, Flat Water Tuesday. It's a rowing-team-going-for-glory story set on a New England prep school campus--old buildings, manicured lawns, and boathouse included. I found it to be a predictable clash of the haves and have-nots with edgy, adolescent boys and--to keep things interesting--a tough, green-eyed coxswain named Ruth. If the first few pages didn't tell you it was coming, you'd surmise tragedy was in the works. It's a theme that I've encountered before.
   A few years ago I read Curtis Sittenfeld's Prep, which I liked but hardly remember. Forty years ago there was A Separate Peace, the 1959 classic on my high school English teacher's suggested reading list that lots of us tried because it wasn't too long. That book stuck with me, as I think Flat Water Tuesday might. There's an outsider who lands among the privileged and learns to make his way. The journey is never easy and by the end there are big lessons learned and an unsettling fatality.
    At first glance Flat Water appealed to me because of the cover. Sometimes we just have to fess up and admit covers grab us and make us read. If I hadn't seen the photograph of rowers skimming over that glassy water I may have passed on this book. But the kayaker in me, the person who loves that serene flat water, seized the book and relished the trip inside the elite 'God Four,' the four-man rowing team with cream-of-the-crop status at Fenton School. The training and try-outs are murderous, and Irwin, who has boarding school and rowing team experience, skillfully puts us inside those damp, foul-smelling rooms with 17-year-old boys--and Ruth with her stopwatch--who sweat and strain and pull and nearly lose consciousness. It's a lot more than callouses on your hands, people. After this book I truly understand the torture of a rowing machine, a close race, and how much vomit an exhausted athlete can produce.
   Flat Water's protaganist is working-class sculler Rob Carrey, who's at Fenton on a post-high school scholarship. Carrey will provide the power the Fenton team needs to reclaim the trophy from arch rival Warwick, but Carrey likes to row alone. And if he wants that free ride at Fenton, he's got to join the God Four. No negotiation. Rob's journey from single sculler to team rower, amid the demands of his coach and boatmates, kept me engaged throughout the entire story.
      Irwin, however, is giving us Rob Carrey in two parts. He balances his life as a student with his life 15 years post-Fenton. We know that Carrey makes it through, but he's back to being a loner. He's a freelance documentary filmmaker, and instead of fitting into a rowing team bound for glory, he's trying to salvage his personal life with love interest and film editor Carolyn. The story moves back and forth with Rob as a teenager and Rob as an adult, although I believe I preferred the prep school narrative a bit more. Whether he's trying to mesh as one of the team or with his lover, Rob grapples with his ability to be a part of something bigger--at least that's what I took away from the story.
   I recommend this book to anyone who wants the inside scoop on the sport of rowing. Before you're on that flat water going head to head with another boat, there are weeks and months of gut-wrenching training. The descriptions of the conditioning regimes and the intricacies of keeping athletes in sync while they row were fascinating. The only time I see rowing competition is during the Olympics. When the races end the athletes look like they're physically defeated, whether they win or not. Now I know why.

The Push from the Book: I am now officially in awe of any athlete involved in this sport. Rowing at an elite level demands year-round dedication and great physical commitment. And, those tiny people who yell into a megaphone? Now I understand what it is a coxswain does and why he is necessary.The sport is more than moving down the river. It's keeping time, digging deep, matching your teammates stroke for stroke.
 

Someday, Someday Definitely.....

....you should read Someday, Someday, Maybe. You'll love Franny Banks, the quick-witted, aspiring actress/waitress who is on the verge of a major career move. Within the next six months she's promised herself that she'll land a meaningful acting job or pack it up and head home. There's always teaching.
   Franny gave herself a three-year window to hit it big in New York City, or at least hit it medium, and during her final days things are starting to percolate. In between her waitressing shifts at a local comedy club, she fits in acting classes with a well-established drama coach. The book opens with Franny preparing for the class showcase where she'll perform in front of the city's top casting and talent agents. It's now or never.
  Of course, when her big moment arrives, Franny tumbles across the stage. She recovers with her trademark humor and you feel in your bones she's on her way, but with Franny it's never easy, despite her comedic timing, her talent and her beauty, which she seldom acknowledges. There are bumps--maybe even a few huge potholes--along the way.
  Before going on I must report that this entertaining debut novel comes from well known television actress Lauren Graham, the former Lorelai Gilmore of "Gilmore Girls" and current star of "Parenthood." Who knew she was a double threat--actor and novelist? Well, actually, she's a triple threat, let's be honest. She's gorgeous, too.   Grrr.
 Graham created a character so agreeable and down-to-earth that I felt like I was catching up with a friend each time I returned to the story. The title alone, Someday, Someday, Maybe, suggests hope amid great uncertainty. Sure, Franny wavers at times, but she's always good company. At times her conversations resemble Graham's rapid-fire Gilmore Girls' patter, and I swore I could hear her voice during exchanges with casting agents or while hanging around with friends. She's fast on her feet, clever and a tad sarcastic. My kind of girl.
    I wanted this book to go on forever, but Wait--There's More!! It will be recreated as a CW television show, and Graham will write the adaptation as well as executive produce! Does this make her a quadruple threat? Probably.
  Someday, Someday, Maybe is set in the mid-1990s, and I presume some of the novel's description of Franny's absurd auditions and interviews were rooted in Graham's world before she hit it big. Ugly sweater commercials included.
   Those of us in the non-acting world realize, I think, that making the cut in the entertainment industry is a mixture of talent, looks, luck and connections. The odds are against lots of beautiful people who try to jump start their careers in New York or Los Angeles. Graham gives us a close look behind the scenes of what it's like to live with a few spare bucks in her checking account while waiting for that elusive big break. The absurdity---the sheer unlikelihood--of ever making it really comes through, which makes you cheer for Franny with all your heart.

The Push From the Book: You can tell I had fun while reading this book, but there's a strong, serious undercurrent pulsing through Franny's story. Stick with it. Stick with your dreams. Give it a go, with all your heart, and see what happens. You're never too old to think about this.