By 
Lee Matthew Goldberg, the Author of “The Great Gimmelmans” has written a captivating and satirical adventure. The genres for this book are fiction, satire, and crime-heist. The timeline for this story is set during the “crash” of 1987, and takes place in New Jersey, Florida, and California, and other places along the way. The story goes into the past and future when it pertains to the events and characters in this story. The author vividly describes his dramatic characters as complex, complicated, quirky, and dysfunctional. There is mayhem and craziness, and wild shenanigans during these adventures. The narrator is Aaron, the twelve year old son during 1987. His oldest sister is boy-crazy, and the youngest carries a taxidermist’s possum named Seymour. His parents are free-spirited and give the impression of living during Woodstock.
The Gimmelmans were living a prosperous life in New Jersey in 1987, until the market crashed, and everything was lost. Somehow the path the family follows is that of Bonnie and Clyde, and starts with robbing smaller places, and then goes on with the intent to rob banks. The family rides in a big van, and heads to Florida to the Orthodox Jewish grandmother’s house. It seems that the father Barry, owes a Loan Shark a large sum of money, and the mob is in pursuit. Since the bank robberies and casualties, the FBI is also in pursuit.
One question that comes to mind is this family one of nature or nurture. In later time, Aaron is faced with consequences from his own child. There is no shortage of action or adventure. I would recommend this unusual novel for those who enjoy going along for the ride.
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