Michael Allen Zell

In this book, set during and after the failed 1984 Louisiana World's Fair, the reader is introduced to Raymond Russell by way of his journal that he names ERRATA. In the realm of publishing, errata are corrections to a published text, and therefore the journal functions as a way for Raymond to make "corrections" to his life, and in particular the events that took place just prior to his starting the journal.

Through the winding, frantic, stream-of-consciousness narrative, readers learn about Raymond's childhood in Indiana, his friend Eve, his adventures in California, and his current situation in New Orleans - driving an unsanctioned taxi only at night. While he meets some interesting and dramatic people (all but two are referred to only as the impersonal "fares"), he is essentially a recluse who prefers to spend time alone in his apartment, reading. It is his unwitting involvement in a crime that affects this loner-utopia...the details of which are revealed in the final entries of ERRATA.

As a byproduct of the unconventional narrative, I found that, for most of the book, I had no clear idea of what was going on. For some readers, this might be unpleasant or tedious, but I rather enjoy the adventure of it - putting the pieces together. In one entry, Raymond writes that "New Orleans is a puzzling canvas". So is this book.… (meer)