NEMESIS (Philip Roth) - November 20/10

A typically depressing and bleak effort from Roth, Nemesis tells the story of a circa WWII 23-year-old who eventually becomes convinced that he was the carrier of the polio that maimed and killed several teenagers - which effectively ruins the remainder of his life (he leaves his loving fiancee because he doesn't want her to be saddled with a cripple). The lack of plot does take some getting used to, but Roth's compelling writing style undoubtedly compensates for the book's rather thin storyline. It's just so downbeat, though, as Roth includes questions of faith and the entire final 50 pages are devoted to flashbacks in which we learn just how Bucky, the vigorous hero, turned away from life following the polio scare. *** out of ****