Casebook: A Novel

1 ​• ​Under the BedI was a snoop, but a peculiar kind. I only discovered what I most didn’t want to know.The first time it happened, I was nine. I’d snaked underneath my parents’ bed when the room was empty to rig up a walkie-talkie. Then they strolled in and flopped down. So I was stuck. Under their bed. Until they got up.I’d wanted to eavesdrop on her, not them. She decided my life. Just then, the moms were debating weeknight television. I needed, I believed I absolutely needed to understand Survivor. You had to, to talk to people at school. The moms yakked about it for hours in serious voices. The only thing I liked that my mother approved of that year was chess. And every other kid, every single other kid in fourth grade, owned a Game Boy. I thought maybe Charlie’s mom could talk sense to her. She listened to Charlie’s mom.On top of the bed, my dad was saying that he didn’t think of her that way anymore either. What way? And why either? I could hardly breathe. The box spring made a gauzy opening to gray dust towers, in globular, fantastic formations. The sound of dribbling somewhere came in through open windows. My dad stood and locked the door from inside, shoving a chair up under the knob. Before, when he did that, I’d always been on the other side. Where I belonged. And it hurt not to move.“Down,” my mother said. “Left.” Which meant he was rubbing her back.All my life, I’d been aware of him wanting something from her. And of her going sideways in his spotlight, a deer at the sight of a human. The three of us, the originals, were together locked in a room.My mom was nice enough looking, for a smart woman. “Pretty for a mathematician,” I’d heard her once say about herself, with an air of apology. Small, with glasses, she was the kind of person you didn’t notice. I’d seen pictures, though, of her holding me as a baby. Then, her hair fell over her cheek and she’d been pretty. My dad was always handsome. Simon’s mom, a jealous type, said that my mother had the best husband, the best job, the best everything. I thought she had the best everything, too. We did. But Simon’s mom never said my mother had the best son.The bed went quiet and it seemed then that both my parents were falling asleep. My dad napped weekends.NOOO, I begged telepathically, my left leg pinned and needled.Plus I really had to pee.But my mother, never one to let something go when she could pick it apart, asked if he was attracted to other people. He said he hadn’t ever been, but lately, for the first time, he felt aware of opportunities. He used that word.“Like who?”I bit the inside of my cheek. I knew my dad: he was about to blab and I couldn’t stop him. And sure enough, idiotically, he named a name. By second grade everyone I knew had understood never to name a name.“Holland Emerson,” he said. What kind of name was that? Was she Dutch?“Oh,” the Mims said. “You’ve always kind of liked her.”“I guess so,” he said, as if he hadn’t thought of it until she told him.Then the mattress dipped, like a whale, to squash me, and I scooched over to the other side as the undulation rolled.“I didn’t do anything, Reen!”She got up. Then I heard him follow her out of the room.“I’m not going to do anything! You know me!”But he’d started it. He’d said opportunities. He’d named a name. I bellied out, skidded to the bathroom, missing the toilet by a blurt. A framed picture of them taken after he’d proposed hung on the wall; her holding the four-inch diamond ring from the party-supply shop. On the silvery photograph, he’d written I promise to always make you unhappy.I’d grown up with his jokes.By the time I sluffed to the kitchen he sat eating a bowl of Special K. He lifted the box. “Want some?”“Don’t fill up.” She stood next to the wall phone. “We’re having the Audreys for dinner.”“Tonight?” he said. “Can we cancel? I think I’m coming down with something.”“We canceled them twice already.”The doorbell rang. It was the dork guy who came to run whenever she called him. He worked for the National Science Foundation and liked to run and talk about pattern formation.

From the acclaimed and award-winning author of Anywhere But Here and My Hollywood, a powerful new novel about a young boy’s quest to uncover the mysteries of his unraveling family. What he discovers turns out to be what he least wants to know: the inner workings of his parents’ lives. And even then he can’t stop searching. Miles Adler-Hart starts eavesdropping to find out what his mother is planning for his life. When he learns instead that his parents are separating, his investigation deepens, and he enlists his best friend, Hector, to help. Both boys are in thrall to Miles’s unsuspecting mother, Irene, who is “pretty for a mathematician.” They rifle through her dresser drawers, bug her telephone lines, and strip-mine her computer, only to find that all clues lead them to her bedroom, and put them on the trail of a mysterious stranger from Washington, D.C. Their amateur detective work starts innocently but quickly takes them to the far reaches of adult privacy as they acquire knowledge that will affect the family’s well-being, prosperity, and sanity. Burdened with this powerful information, the boys struggle to deal with the existence of evil and concoct modes of revenge on their villains that are both hilarious and naïve. Eventually, haltingly, they learn to offer animal comfort to those harmed and to create an imaginative path to their own salvation. Casebook brilliantly reveals an American family both coming apart at the seams and, simultaneously, miraculously reconstituting itself to sustain its members through their ultimate trial. Mona Simpson, once again, demonstrates her stunning mastery, giving us a boy hero for our times whose story remains with us long after the novel is over.1. In the opening note from Hershel Geschwind of Neverland Comics, Hershel writes that Hector and Miles will continue to go back and forth with this manuscript “until they get their story straight or until they grow up, whichever comes last, or never.” How different do you think the boys’ accounts are of what happened, and what role do Hector’s footnotes play throughout the manuscript? What exactly do you think Herschel means by “grow up”?2. This book is in many ways a coming-of age -story, but Miles learns many of his life lessons by spying on his mother, not through his own actual experience. Why do you think the author has chosen to focus so extensively on the effects of adult lives—the secret lives of parents—on their children?3. How the motto of Miles’s and Hector’s school— motto, "is it true, is it kind, is it necessary? Will it improve on the silence?”shape their view of the world? What impact does Eli have on this view?4. Did Miles’s extensive involvement with his mother’s personal life have a negative impact on his ability to focus on his own experiences, or did he gain greater insight into what it means to love than he might have otherwise?5. What do we learn about Irene and about her relationships with Carey and Eli—and about adult lives in general—that we might not find out about were the novel not told through Miles’s perspective? What do we gain? Do you think most teenagers are as fascinated by the lives of their parents as Miles and Hector are?6. Miles mentions that when Eli promises to put up Christmas lights, it was the “first feeling I had for Eli. We could be men who did that shit. I liked the idea of putting up lights ourselves” (page 28). What do the Christmas lights represent to Miles?7. Why is Hector just as invested in uncovering the truth about Eli as Miles is? Or is he even more invested?8. What is the significance of the notes on the kitchen blackboard? How do the quotes act as a reflection of what is going on in the story, whether or not Irene is aware of it at the time? For example, on page 41, what is the significance of the quote “benighted: in a state of pitiful or contemptible intellectual or moral ignorance.” Do you think Eli ever found Irene’s lack of awareness of his own deceit contemptible?9. Several times throughout the novel Eli mentions his love for animals. The only stories he tells that Miles never doubts involve this deep love. Miles says at one point that he saw Eli holding the dead kittens, and he knew how to do it. Do you think the story about the sick cat, Coco, was true? Eli seems to be able to care for animals and not people. What does this say about who he is?10. Does Eli ever really love Irene, Miles, and the Boops? What were his motives for stringing them along, and, do you think he ever believed the outcome would be different than it was?11. On page 104 Miles describes romance as seeming like “friendship, but with a fleck of sparkle.” How do Miles’s feelings about romantic and platonic love change over the course of the novel? What does he learn from his parents’ relationship, from Eli and the Mims’ relationship, and from his friendship with Hector? Do you think Miles ever really questions his own sexuality?12. On page 108, Miles says that when he “thinks of [his] life as a boy, it ended there that night, while the Mims stared out at the Pacific Ocean with its barreling waves, the world indifferent to our losses.” What causes this turning point?13. What role does Ben Orion play? Why does he help Miles and Hector without asking for payment?14. How does hearing directly from an older Hector through his comments in footnotes to the text alter or inform your impression of him as a character? What, if anything, does it bring to light about his relationship with Miles? Did it surprise you that he got into drugs when he went off to school? Do you think one of them needed the other more, and if so, why?15. Why do you think Irene puts up with all of Eli’s broken promises? What is it about him that keeps drawing her back, despite never seeing where he lives, never meeting his child or his brother, and the fact that he never follows through on any of the futures he proposes, even with things as small as the buying of silverware?16. On page 181, at Irene’s forty-fifth birthday party, Eli makes this speech: “All of you love Reen for many reasons. . . . But I, I love her, I love her because I, I can’t help loving her. No matter what ever happens, I am and I will always be in love with Irene Adler.” What does he mean, and what is it about Irene that makes Eli love her, or at least claim to love her, so much?17. Who is “C” in Jean’s book dedication? Why do you think she tolerates Eli’s transgressions, and how much do you think she actually knows about them? Do you think she discovered Irene on her own? Do you think that Eli would eventually have told her?18. What leads Miles to say that “hope for happiness is happiness” (page 229)? Do you think this statement is true?19. Why do you think Miles lies to Eli about his mother dying in the arms of a man she loved when he runs into him years later?20. Mona Simpson is known as an author of voice. How do you think the voice of Miles stacks up? Does he feel real?21. What do you think Irene got out of her relationship with Eli? Does she, and do we, learn anything about her through her sexual experiences with him that give insight into who she is, or into what may have gone wrong with her marriage? Do you think she ultimately found happiness?22. Bonus question 1: Did you notice parallels to Sherlock Holmes? Which boy is Holmes and which is Watson? Did their identities keep shifting, as they disguise their real details, change their appearances and hair colors?23. Bonus question 2: Why do you think the heroine is called Irene Adler?24. Bonus recipe: OLIVE OIL BUNDT CAKE (This is adapted from the pastry chef at Maialino—I imagine Marge barging into Danny Meyer’s Gramercy Park Hotel restaurant and getting the men in aprons to scribble this on a napkin)CAKE •           3 cups all-purpose flour •           1 3/4 cups sugar •           1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt •           1/2 teaspoon baking soda •           1 teaspoon baking powder •           1 cup extra-virgin olive oil •           1 cup whole milk •           3 large eggs •           2 tablespoons grated orange zest •           1/4 cup Grand Marnier 1.         Preheat the oven to 350°. Spray a 10-inch cake pan with cooking spray and line the bottom with parchment paper. In a bowl, whisk the flour, sugar, salt, baking soda and powder. In another bowl, whisk the olive oil, milk, eggs, orange zest and Grand Marnier. Add the dry ingredients; whisk until just combined. 2.         Pour the batter into the prepared pan and bake for 1 hour, until the top is golden and a cake tester comes out clean. Transfer the cake to a rack and let cool for 30 minutes. Run a knife around the edge of the pan, invert the cake onto the rack and let cool completely, 2 hours.  

 “Singular and haunting . . . filled with the quirky and succinct descriptions for which Simpson’s writing is justly celebrated . . . Her verbs are delicious. . . . It’s like watching those small revolving dashes of rainbow-colored light caused by a crystal hung in a window.”—Julia Keller, NPR “Casebook displays Simpson’s signature impressionism. Think Seurat’s pointillist dots rather than Van Gogh’s lavish strokes. Miles’s world is made of tiny scenes, images, anecdotes—collage-like but easy to follow. Fans of Simpson’s My Hollywood will appreciate the thematic kinship, comedy, aphoristic observations and the unflinching look at the effects of divorce. Casebook tackles heavy themes, but with a touch lighter than her early novels—easier to digest, charming, sure-footed and as engaging as ever.”—Josh Cook, Star/Tribune"Simpson's story unfolds with magnetic force. . . . She handles the passage of Miles's crucial years through and beyond high school, including awkward relationships with two girls, with finesse. From beginning to end, it's clear that in everything he does, Miles loves his mother. His indisputable, powerful, and consistent filial love gives 'Casebook' enormous emotional power and makes the surprise ending a heart-breaker."--Jane Ciabattari, The Boston Globe "Adult relationships are the true mystery here. Simpson manipulates the tropes of suspense fiction astutely, and the touches of noir are delicate. "--The New Yorker“Captivating . . . Simpson’s aim is to lyrically capture the time between childhood and adulthood, as fleeting and delicate as the golden-hour light that filmmakers chase.”—Lisa Zeidner, The Washington Post “Just as in Anywhere But Here, Simpson’s central, complicated relationship of parent and child is both a motif and a window into bared hearts . . . She has a gift for re-creating the unique psychological landscape of the adolescent . . . Miles is an extraordinary character—exceptionally intuitive, observant, feeling.”—Susannah Luthi, Los Angeles Review of Books“What’s most remarkable is how Simpson effortlessly snares readers inside a full, intimate world. . . . And for a few delicious days allows readers to relish the innocence of childhood and the intense yearning to discover the secrets of life.”—Christine Thomas, The Miami Herald“Miles Adler-Hart is a teen with a mission: He’s trying to understand his mom. Not because she’s a big-deal mathematician but because by understanding her, he might fathom love, sex, and how his parents’ marriage fell apart. . . . Simpson’s beautifully crafted novel shows us a reconfigured California family through the eyes of a smart, funny adolescent longing to keep hope alive.”—Anne Leslie, People Magazine “A wonderfully dramatic vantage point for us readers, a fresh way to explore the ways families fall apart and come together. . . . Casebook surprises us with its discoveries and offers up a reminder that despite troubles and disappointments, confusion and heartbreak, life can be sweet.”—Natalie Serber, The Oregonian “Simpson is . . . adept at capturing the world of moneyed life in a California beach town once there is less of it and the uncertainty of children navigating the new rules of divorce. . . . Happiness, and its elusiveness is a running theme throughout the novel. Miles tries to define it, as if by pinning it down, he might be able to secure more of for his mom.”—Yvonne Zipp, Christian Science Monitor  “The heart of the book is simply the story of an emotional coming-of-age.  Simpson’s novel is at its strongest in the quiet, unadorned gray areas where Miles’s childhood neuroses and tender loving impulses for his family mingle painfully with his desire to face up to the truth. . . . It’s the poignancy of a child coming to terms with the irreversible losses and ill-judged compromises of adult life that gives emotional weight to the narrative.”—Claire Fallon, The Huffington Post “Casebook is both a detective story and a coming-of-age novel—a hybrid of Harriet the Spy and Chandler’s Phillip Marlow books.”—Darcy Steinke, The Los Angeles Times“If Casebook were a box of cereal, there would be dozens of raisins in every spoonful. Yes, the novel itself has a satisfying arc, but I love it most for the small rewards and humorous touches that Simpson doles out on nearly every page.”—Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel “Any person who grew up in a family being slowly torn apart by their parents’ crumbling marriage will instantly relate to Miles Adler-Rich’s attempt to understand why things are falling apart. Casebook will even find a way to sink its hooks into readers who haven’t had to experience that.”—Jason Diamond, FlavorwireAdvance Praise for Mona Simpson’s CASEBOOK “Ensnaring, witty, and perceptive . . . This exceptionally incisive, fine–tuned and charming novel unfolds gracefully as [Simpson] brings fresh understanding and keen humor to the complexities intrinsic to each stage of life and love.”––Donna Seaman, Booklist (starred review) “This is a story about a son’s love for his mother, and Simpson’s portrayal of utter loyalty is infectious.”––Publishers Weekly (starred review)  “The setup is ingenious . . . A child of divorce turns private-eye in the latest well-observed study of domestic dysfunction from Simpson . . . a top-shelf novelist . . . The new book is framed as a detective story about discovering the deceptions that can swirl around relationships.”—Kirkus Reviews “In this sensitively rendered bildungsroman, Simpson recalls authentic, detailed memories of childhood . . . [A] clever, insightful, and at times hilarious story about family, friendship, and love in all its complex iterations.”––Library Journal