The Harbinger

I really admire Steve Martin. Not only for his wonderful work in “The Jerk”, “Leap of Faith” and “Parenthood,” but for the novellas that he has written. As of now, he has only written two, but they are two of the most memorable, succinct and lovely to read books I have ever come across. They read, not like they are written by a mad cap comic actor, but by a soft-hearted romantic guy, or even a woman.

“Shopgirl” is probably his most well known book, as it was made into a movie and all. They did a pretty crappy job with the movie. Steve was great, as was expected, but Claire Danes did not do Mirabelle justice. Maybe she just didn’t ‘get’ her. I think I ‘got’ Mirabelle and maybe even related to her a little bit.

Even more than Mirabelle, I relate to the hero in Steve Martin’s lesser known book, “The Pleasure of My Company.” Daniel Pecan Cambridge reminds me not only of myself, but of some of my closest friends. He is filled with inexplicable quirks. While this would probably make me nervous in real life, it just endeared him to me when reading the book. The other characters in the book are mostly female, save for the boyfriend of the girl that Daniel drugs on a regular basis and the son of his social worker in training.

The story of “The Pleasure of My Company” centers mostly around Daniel’s apartment. He can’t go anywhere where there isn’t two “scooped out” driveways to cross the street. If he finds himself in a situation beyond his control, he must immediately return home and make a “magic square.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_square He lusts after the Realtor across the street, longs for Zandy the creamy white pharmacist at Rite Aid, but ends up on a road trip with Clarissa, his social worker-in-training and her son. It’s a simple story, but Daniel’s internal thoughts more than make up for the plot. It feels like reading a piece of a regular person’s life.

I have missed this part…. quotes and stuff that made me giggle or get touched:

“But there was a time when Liz Taylor and Richard Burton had never met, yet it doesn’t mean they weren’t, in some metaphysical place, already in love.”

“By now her body was folded in the chair like an origami stork, her elbows, forearms, calves, and thighs going every which-a-way.”

“we were introduced all around, and honestly, it was clear I was the normal one.”

“What if during the entire trip I would not allow myself to speak any word that contained the letter e?”

JackiOh is
Email this author | All posts by JackiOh