Sirk TV Book Review: THE GRAYBAR HOTEL [Scribner]
The context of psychology and motivation would seem to take on a different connotation in the perspective of an incarcerated inmate, especially one with something to say. “The Graybar Hotel” [Curtis Dawkins/Scribner/223pgs] is a lyrical and yet pensive rumination of the lives inside and what got them there but also the existential traction of how these inmates see their lives or path within the choices they make. Dawkins interweaves different stories or approximations of people inside he might have interacted with and what makes them who they are. Many of the stories are indicative of the wrong place at the wrong time but balanced with the inevitable process of human nature, bathed in passion, anger, hate and love to varying degrees. Dawkins finds the comedy and heart in many of his subjects but also the irony in himself. One specific anecdote stands out in the essence of an inmate that tells stories that are too fantastic to be true but the repercussions of his response, as subtle as they are, show the thoughts that are always pushing through.
The focus on details like the Michigan snow or the back stories from “The Beverly Hillbillies” are just those pangs of normalcy in a cage of a world that many would not find normal. But as Dawkins alludes to, sometimes this is the only true world that some of the inmates know. An early story bathes with so much irony as an inmate with seizures turns out to be much different than one would think. The context of the dread of protests of non-violence that provoke reaction and especially the retribution and decisions (whether they actually happened or not) are riveting. The breakdown of the softball game season and how it works blends aspects of “The Longest Yard” with “Shawshank Redemption” but also shows how circumstances can change inside in a blink of an eye. Dawkins talks about people leaving never to be seen again via transfer to keep the peace a kettle that only takes a little bit to boil. Dawkins also has sometime to live for on the outside which he admits with his conviction for life is likely something he will never see. It is that focus and presence of mind in the writing that really gives the reader a sense of the people Dawkins encounters as well as himself, without judging, without needing to understand, but just to accept with a sense of brevity and some heart. B+
By Tim Wassberg
