Jake Fades: A Novel of Impermanence

Jake is a Zen master and expert bicycle repairman who fixes flats and teaches meditation out of a shop in Bar Harbor, Maine. Hank is his long-time student. The aging Jake wants Hank to take over teaching for him. But the bumbling Hank doesn’ t feel up to the job, and Jake is beginning to exhibit behavior that looks suspiciously like Alzheimer’ s disease. Is a guy with as many “ issues” as Hank even capable of taking on the teacher job? And are those paradoxical things Jake keeps saying koan-like wisdom . . . or just dementia? These are just a couple of the questions that confront the quirky characters of Jake Fades as their story unfolds during a week-long trip to Cambridge, Massachusetts. As Jake and Hank trek from bar to restaurant to YMCA to Zen center to coffee shop, we learn the greater arc of their lives, we meet an assortment of odd and endearing friends both old and new, and we savor the culinary delights of the funky neighborhood known as Central Square. In the course of these intense few days, secrets are revealed that alter our perceptions not only of Jake and Hank, but of many of the people around them. Jake Fades is a compellingly readable and entertaining story about love, death, relationships, mentoring, and the joy that can be found in really fine baked goods.

Jake is a Zen master and expert bicycle repairman who fixes flats and teaches meditation out of a shop in Bar Harbor, Maine. Hank is his long-time student. The aging Jake hopes that Hank will take over teaching for him. But the commitment-phobic Hank doesnt feel up to the job, and Jake is beginning to exhibit behavior that looks suspiciously like Alzheimers disease. Is a guy with as many “issues” as Hank even capable of being a Zen teacher? And are those paradoxical things Jake keeps doing some kind of koan-like wisdom . . . or just dementia?

These and other hard questions confront Hank, Jake, and the colorful cast of characters they meet during a week-long trip to the funky neighborhood of Central Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As they trek back and forth from bar to restaurant to YMCA to Zen Center to doughnut shop, answers arisein the usual unexpected ways. 

Click here to listen to the author, David Guy, discuss Jake Fades on North Carolina Public Radio.

Jake is a Zen master and expert bicycle repairman who fixes flats and teaches meditation out of a shop in Bar Harbor, Maine. Hank is his long-time student. The aging Jake hopes that Hank will take over teaching for him. But the commitment-phobic Hank doesn’t feel up to the job, and Jake is beginning to exhibit behavior that looks suspiciously like Alzheimer’s disease. Is a guy with as many “issues” as Hank even capable of being a Zen teacher? And are those paradoxical things Jake keeps doing some kind of koan-like wisdom . . . or just dementia?

These and other hard questions confront Hank, Jake, and the colorful cast of characters they meet during a week-long trip to the funky neighborhood of Central Square in Cambridge, Massachusetts. As they trek back and forth from bar to restaurant to YMCA to Zen Center to doughnut shop, answers arise—in the usual unexpected ways.

David Guy teaches writing in the Hart Leadership Program and the Masters of Public Policy Program at Duke University. He is the author of numerous books, including The Autobiography of My Body and The Red Thread of Passion. His book reviews appear regularly in the Washington Post, the New York Times, and other papers, and he is a contributing editor to Tricycle: The Buddhist Review. He lives in Durham, North Carolina.