Bainbridge Island resident Jonathan Evison has been a lot of things over his 55 years: a landscaper, a caregiver, a warehouse worker, a drive-time radio host and leader of a punk rock band. After writing eight unpublished novels — three of which he physically buried himself — he finally became a published novelist 14 years ago.
Evison's eighth novel — “Again and Again” — was released Tuesday.
Just one week after the publication of his eighth novel, Evison will be the guest at an event hosted by The Spokesman-Review's Northwest Passages book club.
The event will begin Tuesday at 7 p.m. in the recital hall of the Myrtle Woldson Performing Arts Center on the campus of Gonzaga University.
Published: July 21st, 2008
William Miller is an extraordinarily mixed-up young man. A vegetarian raised in a family of bodybuilders, he's smitten with his new stepsister. He eventually heads out into the world to discover who he might become.
Publisher's Weekly wrote: “Evison's debut novel of love and loss, growing up, throwing up and moving on — is a stunner ... Evison provides readers a viciously funny and deeply felt portrayal of a blended family and one man's thwarted longing.”
Winner of the 2009 Washington State Book Award.
Published: Feb. 15, 2011
In 1890, a failed accountant moves to Port Bonita at the foot of the Elwha River with a vision of starting a family — and of damming the river to produce power for the growing town. One hundred and sixteen years later, his great-great-grandson, a manager at a failing fish packing plant, seeks to undo that fateful project.
Entertainment Weekly wrote: “The kind of work that begs to be called sweeping, with its large cast of characters encompassing multiple eras, sturdy American themes of community and nature, and a style that could be called cinematic—specifically, Altmanesque ... ”
Published: Aug. 28, 2012
Having lost his wife, his family, his home and his job, Ben Benjamin embarks on a new career of caregiving for a 19-year-old boy with muscular dystrophy. Their rocky start leads directly to an epic road trip to visit the patient's ailing father..
The New York Times Book Review wrote: “The journey is reckless and wild, infused with the sad rage that makes good comedy great.”
Was adapted in 2016 into a Netflix original film, “The Fundamentals of Caring,” starring Paul Rudd, Selena Gomez and Craig Roberts.
Published: Sept. 8, 2015
Harriet Chance, age 78, was looking forward to an Alaskan cruise that her longtime husband, Bernard, had carefully planned. After Bernard unexpectedly passes away, Harriet decides to go anyway.
“Insightful, richly entertaining,” wrote Kirkus Reviews. “Evison writes humanely and with good humor of his characters, who, like the rest of us, muddle through, too often without giving ourselves much of a break. A lovely, forgiving character study that's a pleasure to read.”
Published: April 3, 2018
Mike Muñoz is having a hard time transitioning into adulthood. He's finished high school but was fired from being a lawn boy on a landscaping crew. He needs to kickstart his life and embark on a career path.
“Evison's quiet novel beautifully considers the deterioration of the American Dream,” wrote Publishers Weekly. “Evison takes a battering ram to stereotypes about race and class” wrote the Washington Post.
In 2022, “Lawn Boy” became the target of conservative groups seeking to ban it from school libraries. Evison said he received death threats.
Published: June 8, 2021
Dave Cartwright returns from his third tour in Iraq a shattered man, faced with losing his home and his wife. He sets out with his 7-year-old daughter to live in a cave in the mountains of the Pacific Northwest.
“What a great storyteller [Evison] is,” wrote the San Diego Tribune. “After exploring themes of what it is to be human, this tale has a very satisfying ending.” Publisher's weekly wrote “Evison's empathetic vision offers much to consider about the limits of parental authority and the capacity for both physical and emotional survival.”
Published: Jan. 11, 2022
Evison bounces between tales of the settlers of the old West in the mid-19th century and their descendents in the present day who find that some of the choices their forefathers made didn't turn out quite as planned.
“A modern classic,” wrote the Christian Science Monitor. “The book is a vast yet intimate tale about the American dream, and the people for whom the vision is yet unfulfilled.”
“The novel is easy to love in part because it deals in generosity and hope,” wrote the New York Times Book Review.
Published: Nov. 7, 2023
Who is “Geno” Miles? A bored, elderly curmudgeon living out his final days in a nursing home? Or, as he claims, has he really lived many lives, going back thousands of years to medieval Spain?
“Evison evokes genuine emotions,” Publishers Weekly writes. “This touches the heart.”
“Again and Again” is cited as one of the most anticipated books of 2023 by Literary Hub, a must-read fall book by the Seattle Times and made the list of “10 books to add to your reading list in November” by the Los Angeles Times.
This edition of Further Review was adapted for the web by Zak Curley.
