Rocket Man***

By William Elliott Hazelgrove.
Published by Pantonne Press Inc.  Chicago Illinois.
copyright 2009.
377 pages.

If this isn't one of the best books I have ever read, I certainly enjoyed my self while reading it,.  It is laugh out loud funny.  Because that is what I did when I read it - i actually laughed out loud..  I read it for a book club, and I think that most of the older group didn't care for it.  It is certainly not a subtle book.  The author pretty much hits the reader over the head with the ideas.  But they are some interesting ideas.  My book groups also complained about the editing.  Something I didn't notice until it was mentioned, or perhaps most of the problems come at the second half of the book. ( I was only half way through when we talked about it).  It is a small press so perhaps that is the reason for the poor proof reading.  It is supposed to be rereleased in a hardcover edition.by a large corporate press and those problems should be taken care of.

So what are some of the ideas the book discusses? It discusses, suburban life and the conformity that comes with that kind of life.  It discusses the concept of happiness.  Are those conformists suburbanites as happy or even happier than the misplaced behemian artist?  In other words, what is happiness and how does that happiness differ for different people.  Those are the two main ideas.  Some other subconcepts are some discussions of how people live beyond their means - a subject that is surely current in this post housing boom failure era.  And the character is frustrated.  Is it his surroundings that stunt his creativity or is he just creatively spent?.  The book also talks about the difficulties of keeping up with the responsibilities of keeping up with modern life and families.

So, the story goes that our protagonist, Dale Hammer (Alias Rocket Man) is a transplant from the city to the distant suburbs of Chicago.  That's right, the story takes place in Chiacgao, though the names of the towns are thinly disguised.  He's a writer and is accustomed to the multicultural, liberal environment of Oakland (alias Oak Park).  But becasue of crime and schools, he and his wife decide to move out to the richer suburbs, though seemingly they are now living in a house they can't afford even though they made money on the sale of their old house. 

Well, Dale just doesn't fit in and between his own incompetence, his refusal to conform and the Fascist like (in his opinion - they are painted that way anyway) community members like gym teachers and scout leaders.  His life is falling apart and it is hilarious to watch/read about. 

But he has a goal.  To make up for the miserable parenting he has performed for his son, he promises his son that he will perform his duties as Rocket Man.  This is a once a year event in which all the scouts blast off their rockets in an open field.  It is turning into something more than he bargained for, but he perseveres for the sake of his son, who is also struggling in his new environment.  The ending is a beautiful, chaotic dance of joy and rebelliousness that brings the close to the happy ending novel.

In fact that was something that the book group had a problem.  The ending was too easy.  It seemed forced they said.  I thought it was perfect and glorious. It was all leading to this point anyway, so why not a happy ending.

By the way, the author is a writer in residence at the Hemmingway House and wrote this book from Hemmingway's attic.  Here is a reading of his book by the author from Hemmingway's attic.