If you love great historical fiction, here is a book for you -- a
big, thick, juicy, character-rich novel set in early 20th century
America.
The Given Day, written by the bestselling author of Mystic River,
is a beautifully cadenced historical novel that grabs you at the
very first scene and keeps you engaged through 600 pages of
powerful narrative.
Set in Boston, The Given Day chronicles all that is happening and
changing in America between 1918 and 1920. Babe Ruth is rising to
fame, blacks are free but still very much second-class citizens,
and workers are discovering the power of coming together in unions.
At the heart of the story are Thomas Couglin and his son Danny,
both passionately commited to being policemen but clearly of two
very different generations. Danny's respect for his father is deep,
but he is also fiercely independent minded. At his very core is an
unshakeable belief in basic fairness - and this conviction
eventually brings him smack up against the very will of his old man
and the relationship he cherishes.
Many big names of the day are also part of the story…the
aforementioned Babe Ruth; the ever-colourful Red Sox owner Harry
Frazee; Boston Mayor Andrew Peters; Boston Powerbroker James
Jackson Storrow; an up and coming John Hoover; and Samuel Gompers
President of The American Federaton of Labor. It makes for a rich
and roiling brew.
The climax moment of the book, and no doubt the inspiration for the
title, is September 9th, 1919, the day over 1,100 Boston policemen,
led by Danny, went on strike for a fairer working wage and a fairer
work week. The build up to that strike, its outcome and the impact
it had on those who participated makes this a moving, and at times,
breathtaking story. And All that transpires between Danny and his
father will touch every father and son who read this book.
On the first really cool day of fall, this is the book to curl up
with.