The Ecstatic by Victor LaValle

The Ecstatic Reviews

• 
  Gregor Xane

  The author manages to find humor in the wreckage of his characters' lives without ever condescending. This is a fine work where every scene matters. Truly funny and truly sad in equal measures. Also, I'd most certainly buy the lead character's encyclopedia.
• 
  Phyllis | Mocha Drop

  Victor Lavalle's The Ecstatic left me feeling ambivalent. I found the novel to be well written, original, and crafty; but at times I also felt lost and confused. Perhaps the latter is intentional since the story is narrated by Anthony Jones, an obese schizophrenic, who lives with his equally schizophrenic relatives. Anthony is rapidly deteriorating and although he seems relatively in control at the beginning of the novel, it is quite clear that he has lost all of his mental faculties at the end.
  The book is divided into three sections. In "The Whale" segment, Lavelle opens with Anthony's younger sister, mother, and grandmother rescuing him from Cornell University. He has not attended classes in a couple of years, is living in squalor, and has supported himself with menial jobs. He returns home to live in the basement and reacquaint himself with the old neighborhood. It is in this section that we learn about Anthony's atrocious eating habits, his mother's mental disorder, and his family's relationship with the neighbors. He tries to reinsert himself into society by losing weight, dating, and getting a job. Sadly, he is exploited by his employers and neighborhood thugs, fails at weight loss, and is jilted by his love interest. In the "Miss Innocence" segment, a family road trip to the sister's beauty pageant goes awry, largely due to Anthony's worsening condition. They meet a few questionable characters along the way that seem equally insane as the Jones clan. The last segment, "The Hounds" is Anthony's final descent into dementia where he becomes a danger to himself and others. He is literally trapped physically in his neighborhood by the patrolling dogs and mentally in his weakened mind.
  
  At most, The Ecstatic is entertaining. As mentioned earlier, Lavalle lost me on a few twists and turns, but I continued reading to see how it would end. I think the pacing of the story was solid, but character development was somewhat lacking. Anthony's character was the most developed and that is putting it mildly; the other characters were lightly sketched and void of any real definition. There were plenty of dark comedic episodes sprinkled throughout that caused me to laugh aloud, but more importantly, I felt pity for the central character as he surrendered to his illness. I would not recommend this novel to everyone, only those who are curious and courageous enough to venture down a dark and disheartening literary side street.
• 
  Barry

  Strange, sad, hilarious, and more than a little surreal. I will definitely be checking more out from Mr. LaValle, and soon.
• 
  Greg

  While at the library looking for a new author, a book I've never heard of, I pulled this off the shelf and without reading the book jacket blurbs, I just dived right in. How do narrators with mental problems bordering on insanity manage to have such smart insights into their surroundings? How do they come up with just the right comic line at the right time? For me, this seems to be a major flaw in these kinds of books. Then again, all of us can name what appears to be instances in which "lunatics are running the asylum." (Just read/watch any news outlet. Personally, I try to avoid the "news".) So maybe that is LaValle's point: our narrator. Anthony, might just be as sane (or insane) as the rest of us. This is a one-sitting read, and I enjoyed it, hence my three-star rating. (Oh, now that I've finished the book and read the jacket blurbs, comparing "The Ecstatic" to the abysmal "Confederacy of Dunces" is very unfair, as "Ecstatic" is far better. And I think "Dunces" even won a Pulitizer or some huge award. Must have been a very weak year for non-fiction, imho.)
• 
  Foxy!

  An interesting assortment of characters populates Victor LaValle’s The Ecstatic, everyone from the morbidly obese main character, Anthony, to his ninety-something grandmother who is periodically (and literally) strapped to various family members’ backs, to the precocious teenage beauty pageant contestant Nabisase, to Uncle Arms, the proprietor of an alternative pageant not focused on beauty but tribulation.
  
  It’s been several days since I finished this book and three things remain with me. And, I suspect, none of these were the intent of the author, which I will discuss later.
  
  The first aspect of the book that remains with me above everything else is the section on the duelling pageants in which Nabisase will participate. They serve as the heart of the book and where most of the action takes place. However, much of the action in this segment is derailed by Anthony’s interactions with Uncle Arms, whose own pageant may as well be called the Miss Misery Pageant. It rewards hardship and personal tragedy over beauty, while the Miss Innocence pageant rewards the “virtue” of virginity. Though Anthony and his family have personal tragedy, what with various family members suffering from mental illness, they own these hardships rather than letting these tribulations own them, thus giving them a sense of triumph and perseverance that might be lacking in others. In fact, the thirteen-year-old Nabisase owns her sexuality, and later in the book pursues an older man with the sexual dedication of one ready to explore. Furthermore, when Nabisase or Anthony strap their grandmother to their back, it isn’t with a sense of difficulty or hardship; rather, it simply is. It is just what you do to get through to support a family member. Overall, this section of the book, is entertaining, lively, and aptly portrays a family trying to get by.
  
  This portrayal of the family is what brought me to the second most memorable part of the book, which was the believability of the grandmother and the action surrounding her. With any book, one must check believability at the door and accept the rules of the book’s universe. While it explores some of the zanier aspects of our world -- beauty pageants, dangerous weight loss methods, and a litany of odd neighborhood character tropes -- LaValle’s The Ecstatic is set squarely in this world. With a diminutive ninety-something grandmother of my own, I found it quite unbelievable that anyone would strap her to their back and walk around, whether or not they were overweight. In this book, the grandmother is carried around by both the overweight Anthony and by the thirteen year-old Nabisase. Maybe a large man might carry around his grandmother, strapped to his back, maybe…..but a teenage girl? Couldn’t anyone have found a wheelchair? A small complaint, yes. Despite this stretch of the imagination, it still made for several funny scenes.
  
  Finally, I come to Uncle Arms, who is by far the most interesting character and the third aspect of the book that remains with me. He is a charlatan of the first order, who has adopted the affected persona of an uneducated Southern gentleman with a near-unintelligible drawl. Meant to remind his audience of the antebellum South and the subservient behavior of one descended from slaves, Uncle Arms uses both his race and his diminutive stature, to hide the fact that he is actually descended from one of the few black aristocratic families from the Old South. In the character of Uncle Arms, we see what might have been LaValle’s larger authorial intent in which we could explore both race and class. This character uses both to his advantage to reinforce his pageant audience’s expectations of how a black man should act, all the while hiding his own class background so that he can profit off of the audience’s biased and racist expectations.
  
  Oddly enough, this felt like what should have been the heart of the book and this dip into race and class could have been explored more. However, it seemed as if LaValle actually intended to highlight obesity and mental illness rather than race and class. In other words, there was a tug between these four ideas (race, class, obesity, and mental health) that felt as if they were competing for the author’s attention. With the focus so much on obesity and mental illness, to some degree the question of mental illness, in particular, was still left unresolved. I suppose this might have been intentional as the specter of Anthony’s mental health lingers throughout the book and we don’t know how he will turn out. But we are left wondering what happened to Anthony’s mother. Again, was this intentional? If so, I would have liked to have a little more resolution. We didn’t necessarily need to know exactly what happened to the mother, but it would have been nice to have some element of conclusion with the character, especially since she was such a large part of the first section.
  
  While questions of authorial intent remain for me -- and I would have liked more of the second section of the book, particularly with the pageants and Uncle Arms -- LaValle’s book succeeded as a first novel. Though I have only read two works by him (this novel and the novella “Lucretia and the Kroons”) and I liked the novella more, I will still continue to read LaValle. Several times throughout The Ecstatic, I found myself literally laughing out loud, chuckling to myself, or re-reading various parts because they were funny. LaValle also painted the characters in such a way that I have no doubt Anthony, Nabisase and the grandmother really exist and are still somewhere in Queens, New York, planning a trip to another pageant, though I doubt the grandmother is strapped to anyone’s back.
• 
  Bill

  Overall,I really enjoyed this book - it was crisply written, compelling, and had a great undertone of "going sane in a crazy world." It comes as no surprise that when talking about the book, I have to give shouts out both to Ignatius Reilly of Confederacy of Dunces and Oscar de Leon of Oscar Wao infamy. LaValle's Anthony James is kind of a hybrid of the two, yet brings together the best of both worlds.
  
  I guess my only big critique of the book as a whole is that, for my taste, it lacked over-arching story, and read more like a collection of vignettes involving the same characters. Other than that, it was a really enjoyable read, and each individual section or sub-plot really jumped off the page.
  
  LaValle is a talented writer and does a wonderful job of balancing the real with the not-quite real to make for an overall entertaining read.
• 
  Melisa

  This earlier work of LaValle's is not quite like his later, more supernatural novels, but is still pretty unhinged. The narrator is a morbodly obese young man who hails from a small crazed family and may be crazed himself. A parade of bizarre things happen, like a rally of vegans, beauty pageants, and stray-dog attacks, but it flows together seamlessly with LaValle's flawless wiring.
• 
  Josh

  Another fantastic novel by Victor LaValle. This story is funny, brutal, engaging & has a brilliant end.
• 
  Tracy

  I wanted to like this so much more than I did.
• 
  Elliott

  It's been almost a year since I finished this book and I still don't quite know how I feel about it.
  
  The author says that the title comes from an old term for mentally ill people, and that this book is meant to highlight the experiences of those people who still to this day fall through, or are pushed, the cracks in society. It's entirely accurate to say that this book centers those experiences and portrays them in a nuanced, complex, and perhaps most unusually accurate way. It's difficult to find books about people with serious mental illnesses that do all three of these things, especially ones that don't end with a bow wrapped around them and a card that says, and now doesn't that make you feel so much better about your own life?
  
  At the same time though, this book isn't perfect. It owes a lot to Junot Diaz's Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao, not just in it's style and content (a dangerously overweight son struggling with his own neuroses and sexual hang ups while living in an immigrant household with three generations of women-his sister, mother, and grandmother-all of whom have their own struggles).
  
  LaValle also struggles with his depiction of women and their sexualities. The protagonists' sister is barely pubescent and there are numerous points in the book where she faces pretty egregious sexualization, some of which comes from her bother himself. His mother is perhaps the character treated most unkindly. Additionally the sister appears in a scene that does warrant a trigger warning for statutory rape or the sexual abuse of a minor. These are not inherently bad things, as representing something inexcusable isn't the same as accepting or supporting it. However I do feel that at times the writing blurs the line between saying that men view women as unattainable unpeople, and believing it.
  
  My final note has much less to do with LaValle and much more to do with the general populace. Mentally Ill people face enormous disenfranchisement, violence, and the outright disgust of many. I fear that someone less open minded or knowledgeable could easily read this book and ultimately take away that mentally ill people, ecstatic people, are human just as they are, but their fear and mistrust of these people is still the justified and safer option. This is due in part to the ending of the novel, but also because LaValle, like all good writers, doesn't tell you with a neon sign how exactly to feel about the events of his novel or its protagonist.
  
  I do highly recommend this book, if not just for the questions it raises in the reader, but also it's painstaking dedication to narrating a story from the perspective of someone whose mind resists description at every turn.
• 
  Omari

  I dont want to diminish how unique and special this book is... but I want to describe it as a Black urban "Little Miss Sunshine" or "Donnie Darko" or a "Series of unfortunate events". Like the perfect indie dark humor irreverant americana film. Really fantastic introduction to an author Ive heard alot and nothing about at the same time. The cover and title of the book is so misleading and so spot on.
• 
  Nancy Oakes

  As I was first reading this book I thought it was an Ignatius J. Reilly clone story. Far from it! This is actually an outstanding piece of original literature, told from the point of view of the main character, Anthony James, who has just flunked out of Cornell University, lives in a hellhole of a basement apartment, wears colored suits (green and purple are but two examples) and weighs 315 pounds at age 19. He comes from a family with a history of mental illness; Anthony himself is probably schizophrenic, often thinking long monologues in his head but realizing when he comes to the end that he has just given voice to his thoughts. Mom, his sister and grandmother all live together in a house in New York where they bring Anthony to live after rescuing him from a possible lapse into mental illness after his Cornell episode. Mom is beholden to a loan shark, Ishkabibble; Sis is 13 and really is embarrassed by her family -- she enters a pageant in Virginia for "Miss Innocence" where the contestants are those who have managed to keep their virginity; Grandma is in her 90s and can't believe how the family has turned out.
  
  A lot of weird and frankly bizarre things happen in this novel which I cannot even begin to describe; but all and all, it is a novel about family. It is funny, sad, and just weird in places. I absolutely loved each and every character down to the guy who wants to be thin so badly he eats bad salmon to get tapeworms.
  
  I would recommend this novel to serious readers who don't need the standard lines of plot development to enjoy a good read.
• 
  Steph

  I want to give this a 3.5 because I was lost several times in this book and I felt like it was moving a little slow however, I did enjoy it. I wasn't a big fan of a few scenes and at times, it was hard to figure out whether the scene was actually happening or if Anthony was imaging things (someone who has read this PLEASE tell me if the movie theater part was actual or his imagination). But I think that's the good thing about this book...the lead does have mental issues and so it's written from his perspective. Pretty good book if you can get past the sometime slowness.
• 
  Alisa

  I expected to like this better than I did. Lots of things happen, but it didn't feel like anything was pushing them to happen.
  
  But since it was an interview with LaValle about his forthcoming book that got me reading this one, I'm not giving up. I hope next time he reads as well in the pages as he does on the jacket flap.
• 
  Carmilla Voiez

  Anthony is the ultimate in unreliable narrators. This books is full of surreal scenes, twisted logic, impossible events and a touch of magic, but how much of Anthony’s account can we believe? Sitting here, the day after finishing this astounding book, I struggle to untangle what actually happens in the story.
  
  I think Anthony returns to his childhood home where his sister, mother and grandmother live. I think they are afraid for him, certainly in the opening paragraphs it seems he is not capable of looking after himself, and yet, very soon after living with his family he sees himself as taking care of all of them, working numerous jobs, writing a book, searching for love, driving them across states for a beauty pageant, and ensuring both grandmother and Ledric (a friend he may have met at a very weird fat camp) get the medical attention they need.
  
  There are other strange characters, including “Uncle Arms”, The President, and a loan shark called Ishkabibble who claims Anthony is his only friend. It’s darkly funny, probably best categorised as magical realism, and it’s a wonderful book.
  
  Victor Lavalle has become one of my favourite authors. The Changeling, Big Machine and The Ballad of Black Tom are also incredible novels, beautifully written with strange and carefully chaotic plots. His characters are richly drawn, each deeply flawed in a myriad of ways. I need to pick up his short story collection next.
  
  Other reviews of Victor Lavalle’s books on my blog -
  
  
  http://carmillavoiez.wixsite.com/carm...
  
  
  http://carmillavoiez.wixsite.com/carm...
  
  
  http://carmillavoiez.wixsite.com/carm...
  
• 
  Hairee

  I read Victor LaValle’s The Changeling and Big Machine before coming to this, his first novel. I loved The Changeling, his lasted novel. In the 15 years between this, his first novel, and his latest, he has clearly become a very fine novelist. What I loved about The Changeling, however, was in too short supply in his first attempt. Like clarity, for instance. I never understood what the point of this story was often lost as to the purpose of scenes and what they were building towards. Like pacing. This novel dragged a lot for me, and many a time it was only the playfulness of the sentences that got me past one page to the next. Like characterization. I didn’t understand any of the characters. I really didn’t. So I couldn’t understand their choices either. And so I couldn’t understand the point of the scenes or get a sense of the plot.
  
  The one thing I enjoyed was the humor and the writing. LaValle’s writing talent and sense of humor is obvious. And that’s what will persuade me to read all his other earlier works. Looking forward to his novellas especially.
• 
  melbutnotgibson

  I’m upset because I really wanted this to be a five star. Lavalle is one of my favorite authors and I adored, “The Devil in Silver.” I figured I was going to love this one too, especially with such heavy themes of mental health analysis. To be fair, I did enjoy both Lavalle’s writing, commentary on social issues as well as mental health, and the characterization of the protagonist’s family members. Unfortunately, these factors were not enough to redeem the book. Unlike both “The Devil in Silver,” and, “The Changeling,” I had a hard time finding Anthony likable, which is both odd and disappointing. A staple of Lavalle’s books is complex and flawed but admirable protagonists. It sucks because Anthony is by no means one dimensional nor is he a outright horrible person. Yet I couldn’t stand reading about his whiny, self pity, as well as his objectification and commentary on women. And the plot of this one wasn’t strong enough to keep me overly intrigued. I was just expecting more. Still love the author and will read more of his books!
• 
  L.

  I wanted to like this book (Victor LaValle is a favorite) but I just couldn't get into it. I didn't like the main character. Actually, I didn't like any of the characters. I just had a really difficult time connecting to this story or staying interested in how it would progress at all. The speech was disjointed and confusing, which I can kind of forgive since the main character is possibly schizophrenic. The plot is a little uneven, too. Maybe this book speaks to someone else, and I really wish I had gotten more out of it because I did try. Obviously, I feel kind of conflicted- I still give it 3 stars, but that's all for LaValle's always-wonderful style and twisted creativity. Otherwise, it left me feeling a little disappointed.
• 
  Rich Engel

  Anthony is rescued from a college town where he failed out and is falling apart, to his home neighborhood in Queens and a multigenerational household. His kid sister enters a beauty pageant out of state; he is trying to come up with a schlocky horror movie idea while cleaning houses for a living; his friend gets ill trying to lose weight. The main character and his mom experience bouts of acute mental illness, which makes the flow of the book diminished since you have no idea what's coming next. But even though it's therefore episodic, and even though there is for-me-triggering violent family fights, I found great sympathy for Anthony.
• 
  Carol

  So wanted to like this book, and there is so much to like about it. Unsung corners of Queens and LI described so well. Weird characters and a weird roadtrip. Packs of dogs defining a tough world; family riven by mental illness. Lots of capers.
  
  But it felt misogynistic ultimately; and really, he had to hit grandma and his 13 year old sister in the last few pages? I guess I missed the point, and I know grandma will do a damned good job taking care of herself--but still--I wanted more.
• 
  Sophie Carbone

  Welll…. This was not what I was expecting. Definitely more of a Confederacy of Dunces meets little miss sunshine? Than the demonic version of little miss sunshine I was expecting. Still very witty and well written as always, just more confusing than I was expecting. Definitely want to pick this one apart!
• 
  Corey

  Very funny, with sentences that snap, crackle and pop.
• 
  Lauren Hopkins

  Why is it that the drop-outs are the ones who think they're smarter than everyone else because they took that intro to firm analysis class?
• 
  Terry Mark

  A bizarre and entertaining novel.
• 
  Bill

  I dig LaValle, but this was a tough one for me. I struggled with the format from the get go and thought I would relax and settle in, but never did.
• 
  val

  writing// plot, characters, pacing, development
  
  Lavalle’s stories have been lost to me for some time now but this one truly evaded my understanding.