Nebraska by Monica Datta

THE book of the year — ask anyone in publishing. It takes some effort to commit to but, aren’t most remarkable experiences kinda like that?

The writer takes huge swings at the 21st century condition (tracing back to, in no particular order: partition, migration, imperialism, Gen X, Lacanian philosophy, and architectural pedagogy.) The precision and obsessive, hilarious detail with which the narrator renders the footnotes of this book render those huge themes both universally relevant and at times, completely surprising, funny, and/or heartbreaking. Nebraska can feel like an intellectual puzzle, but it’s one that pays off through its nested structure and the complexity of its characters and plotting.