July 20, 2007

Thank You for Smoking

“Among Other Things, I’ve Taken Up Smoking,” by Aoibheann Sweeney

From biting your nails to twirling your hair, bad habits are hard to shake.

Conversely, they’re easy to pick up.

And, as evidenced by Aoibheann Sweeney’s debut novel, Among Other Things, I’ve Taken Up Smoking, it’s a cinch to commence the titular conduct. Or so discovers Miranda Donnal after a lonely childhood spent on an island off Maine, where her father leads a solitary life translating Ovid’s Metamorphoses.

With few friends and little desire to go to college, Miranda heads to Manhattan to assist at the institute where her dad once worked and learns lessons not found in the classroom. Her informal education includes teachers like a handsome grad student, a street cart vendor, and a gay couple.

By presenting the story in first person, Sweeney keeps us with Miranda as she unravels mysteries about her father’s past while simultaneously preparing for her own future.

And, yes, she puffs in the process.

Because when there’s smoke, there’s fire.

Available online at amazon.com.