Enchanting new novel paints ‘Impossible Lives’
Brooklyn BookBeat: Author to read in Fort Greene
Award-winning author Andrew Sean Greer has recently released his latest novel, an imaginative story titled “The Impossible Lives of Greta Wells” (Ecco/Harper Collins) that follows one woman as she navigates her life in three alternate time periods during the twentieth century.
Like in his New York Times bestselling novel “The Confessions of Max Tivoli”, Greer creates intricate yet relatable characters, the most notable of whom is Greta Wells. Though conventional in many ways, Greta faces an extraordinary set of circumstances that prompt her to consider the continual adversity that women face (Greer aptly dedicated the novel to “all the women in [his] life”).
The novel opens in 1985 in New York City, where Greta recalls the loss of both her twin brother Felix, who died of AIDS, and her lover Nathan, who left her for another woman. In an effort to alleviate her depression, Greta hesitantly decides to undergo electroconvulsive therapy in 25 treatments. While her doctor promises the procedure will not damage her brain, he warns that she might feel disoriented.