Wellness

Starred review from July 17, 2023
Hill (The Nix) blends a family chronicle with cultural critique in his expansive and surprisingly tender latest. Jack Baker, a photographer, and Elizabeth Augustine, a self-styled polymath, live across the street from each other as college students in 1990s Chicago, where each spies on the other through their windows. After they meet face-to-face at one of the alt rock shows Jack photographs, they connect over their interest in the local music scene and fall in love. Twenty years later, the couple and their eight-year-old son are planning a move to the suburbs. Jack, who’s now an adjunct professor of art history, and Elizabeth, a researcher for a lab contracted by the FDA to study the placebo effect in wellness products, both wonder what’s left of their bohemian youth and their long-ago voyeuristic romance. One night, they’re invited to a sex club by another couple they meet at a bar, with whom they reminisce about the “abandoned” neighborhood where they first met, prompting a waiter to call out Jack for erasing the community’s Puerto Rican population. As the Dickensian chronicle shifts between past and present and probes such issues as gentrification, toxic internet culture, and modern parenting, the realities of the couple’s meet cute come into focus, and they learn the truth behind their first impressions. In the end, Jack and Elizabeth’s story speaks to the way people craft narratives to give their lives meaning, and it asks whether believing in those narratives ultimately helps or harms. This stunning novel of ideas never loses sight of its humanity.

March 1, 2024

In his follow-up to the New York Times best seller The Nix, Hill skillfully tells the knotty tale of Jack and Elizabeth, college sweethearts whose middle-aged lives fall short of their youthful promise. The narrative unravels the layers of their individual pasts and details the evolution of their relationship, capturing the essence of a modern marriage that has weathered its share of discontent. This intricately plotted story explores the profound internal changes people undergo as they age and the challenges of maintaining connection. As Jack and Elizabeth turn away from each other, listeners are given a candid glimpse behind the curtain, seeing their struggles and the complex dynamics of their relationship. Ari Fliakos's narration is a true highlight, perfectly embodying the essence of this couple. Fliakos masterfully portrays Jack and Elizabeth as deeply thoughtful and slightly flawed individuals and seamlessly transitions between the two without awkward changes of voice. His emotionally astute performance elevates the novel and enriches the listening experience. VERDICT Hill's exceptional storytelling is further enhanced by Fliakos's flawless narration. This wistful portrait of a marriage is highly recommended.--Christa Van Herreweghe

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