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Read, Ponder, Repeat
A Review by Snowden Wright

By title alone, Tom McCarthy's Remainder, a word that basically means "what's left over," sounds boring. And that's even before you consider the plot. An unnamed protagonist pays hundreds of actors to reenact mundane tasks -- replacing a flat tire, taking out the trash, over and over until each maneuver attains an aura of importance, a hint of Deep Meaning.

But here's the thing: Remainder doesn't drag. In fact, it zooms. It's intelligent. It's compassionate and poignant. It's even downright exciting at times. The main character is a bit unhinged, but it doesn't take long to realize he's no crazier than the rest of the world. His reenactments are a response to today's Starbucks culture, heavy on the consumerism, light on the humanism.

And so what seemed a book about chores soon becomes a book about a man searching for authenticity in an unauthentic world. While that could be boring in the hands of many other writers, Tom McCarthy manages not only to make us believe in but also to care for a man who wants control over the uncontrollable. Think about that the next time you order a grande house blend.

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