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Among the Dead
Michael Tolkin's acclaimed second novel, Among the Dead, is an arresting examination of public and private grief in the wake of unspeakable disaster, a slow-burning tour de force of psychological fiction. When Frank Gale writes a passionate letter to his wife confessing an affair, he hopes all can be forgiven on the warm beaches of Mexico. But the farewell kiss of his girlfriend causes him to miss the flight carrying his wife and daughter, and when he learns that their plane has crashed in a crowded city, his life changes in the course of seconds. Soon Frank's letter is discovered among the dead, and suddenly one man's struggle to comprehend his loss and grief becomes consumed in a media circus of legal drama, family quarrels, and public scandal.
- GenresFictionAmerican Fiction
256 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
15 people are currently reading
178 people want to read
About the author
Michael Tolkin
15 books40 followersMichael Tolkin is an American filmmaker and novelist. He has written numerous screenplays, including The Player (1992), which he adapted from his 1988 book by the same name, and for which he received the 1993 Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. A follow-up book, Return of the Player, was published in 2006.
Tolkin was born in New York City, New York, the son of Edith, a studio executive, and the late comedy writer Mel Tolkin. Tolkin lives in Los Angeles with his wife Wendy Mogel (parenting expert and author of bestseller The Blessing of a Skinned Knee).
Tolkin was born in New York City, New York, the son of Edith, a studio executive, and the late comedy writer Mel Tolkin. Tolkin lives in Los Angeles with his wife Wendy Mogel (parenting expert and author of bestseller The Blessing of a Skinned Knee).
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Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews
September 17, 2014
This is the kind of dark, dark comedy that I love, the kind that makes people give me strange looks and ask what's wrong with me. As far as I'm concerned, "Among the Dead" ranks right up there with Fay Weldon's "The Life and Loves of a She-Devil" as one of the great comic novels of moral degradation and its many indignities. Frank Gale is an absolute snake who is plotting how to reveal his infidelities to his wife in order to minimize the damage to himself and maximize his personal happiness. This involves a vacation to Mexico with his wife and daughter, a confessional letter strategically placed in his daughter's luggage, and a planned walk on the beach with said daughter while the wife absorbs the truth of her husband's unfaithfulness. Unfortunately, two things thwart his plan: his wife reads the letter early while packing for the trip, and he misses the flight while staying too long at a lunch with his mistress, at which he ends the affair. Then the unthinkable (to most people) happens: the flight his family is on crashes, killing everyone on board. The rest of this excruciatingly uncomfortable tale follows Frank as he tries to wring gold from the dross of his own calcified soul, while the universe (or karma or a vengeful God, take your pick) knocks the cosmic dominoes over, one by one, in order to ensure that the execrable Frank gets exactly what's coming to him. Tolkin's insights into the depths to which the human animal can stoop are breathtaking, and Frank Gale is one of the truly great villains of modern literature. His inner thoughts are amazing in their lucidity and delusional intensity; while Frank's self-aggrandizement is both hilarious and pathetic, the sheer audacity of his acts of self-preservation are stunning. It's quite the high-wire act, and the shadenfreude we experience at his inevitable fall is tinged with unease, as we comfort ourselves that no cataclysm could ever cause US to stoop to such depths.
July 16, 2012
I honestly do not know why this book was ever published. It is one of the worst books I have ever read. Deceived by a very interesting blurb, I purchased it from my local charity shop. Now I know why it was there.
None of the characters are likeable and I immediately detested the main character. He was an extremely disturbing man, who is unemotional at the deaths of his family. Instead of grieving he is more concerned with his ailing career and the outward persona he creates. There is also one other thing that really made me dislike Frank. He wants to have sex with practically every female he comes across and describes it all in vivid detail. There is very little reason for these passages and as such only act to distance you further from a character who was very flat to begin with. There does not seem to be any redeeming features in his personality whatsoever. I did not particularly warm to any of the other characters either, which detached me completely from the book.
The storyline could have been fantastic if Tolkin had written it differently. The idea of what a man would do if he had lost his family immediately after his confessing to his wife about an affair is definitely an interesting one. Tolkin instead set about destroying the integrity of the idea, making a character so obviously unremorseful for his actions that it felt that it was a completely fruitless merry-go-round with neither Frank nor the reader learning anything from the experience.
Structurally it was very hard to get into the book, with long, drawn-out chapters. Tolkin frequently used asides throughout the chapters, for example Frank’s mother would say “hi” to him, and Frank would divert off into a long story about her which was not of relevance. This meant that I kept losing the current plot and struggled to make myself be drawn back in.
This book was just agony to endure and every page turn was more painful than the last. Do not read this book.
None of the characters are likeable and I immediately detested the main character. He was an extremely disturbing man, who is unemotional at the deaths of his family. Instead of grieving he is more concerned with his ailing career and the outward persona he creates. There is also one other thing that really made me dislike Frank. He wants to have sex with practically every female he comes across and describes it all in vivid detail. There is very little reason for these passages and as such only act to distance you further from a character who was very flat to begin with. There does not seem to be any redeeming features in his personality whatsoever. I did not particularly warm to any of the other characters either, which detached me completely from the book.
The storyline could have been fantastic if Tolkin had written it differently. The idea of what a man would do if he had lost his family immediately after his confessing to his wife about an affair is definitely an interesting one. Tolkin instead set about destroying the integrity of the idea, making a character so obviously unremorseful for his actions that it felt that it was a completely fruitless merry-go-round with neither Frank nor the reader learning anything from the experience.
Structurally it was very hard to get into the book, with long, drawn-out chapters. Tolkin frequently used asides throughout the chapters, for example Frank’s mother would say “hi” to him, and Frank would divert off into a long story about her which was not of relevance. This meant that I kept losing the current plot and struggled to make myself be drawn back in.
This book was just agony to endure and every page turn was more painful than the last. Do not read this book.
April 20, 2020
I remember reading a line by David Mamet once where he said that good drama is not about nice things happening to nice people. Character likability is a overrated and overstated "virtue" in the narrative arts (are Captain Ahab, Patrick Bateman, Travis Bickle, or Richard III nice or likable fellows?). People often say, "that character wasn't likable, therefore the novel/film/play was bad." I disagree. Frank Gale in Among the Dead is not a paragon of moral virtue; he is selfish, shallow, imprudent, but also complex and engaging, appalling and funny, spiteful and introspective. He's human, not a mascot or a symbol.
I liked Among the Dead very much. A very dark comedy, cringe worthy at times, very funny, and also very sad. A terrific novel
I liked Among the Dead very much. A very dark comedy, cringe worthy at times, very funny, and also very sad. A terrific novel
March 7, 2009
A man who has been cheating on his wife loses her and his young daughter in a plane crash. Hilarious hijinks ensue, along with labyrinthine journeys through the narrator's mind as he explores alternate pasts and futures that reveal him to be a pathetic loser with low self-esteem, or maybe just human. I've read this one about three times; it's perhaps not the most realistic portrayal of grief and loss, but it's hysterical if you can handle it.
January 31, 2013
Harrowing and bleak and ugly. Also, funny as hell. I found it comforting (or, more accurately, "comforting") to read so accurate a depiction of my own uncontrollable thoughts of what-if, maybe-if-I-had, and if-only during crisis.
May 6, 2023
Am ales aceasta carte deoarece exemplarul meu are o coperta foarte reusita care, alaturi de titlu, trimite cu gandul la o tematica SF-Fantasy sau poate chiar horror. Chiar si descrierea de pe coperta a IV-a duce cititorul tot in aceasta zona. Din pacate insa nu este vorba despre nimic de genul.
"Among the dead" a aparut in 1993 si il are in prim-plan pe Frank Gale ce ii marturiseste printr-o scrisoare sotiei ca a inselat-o cu o colega. El spera ca o vacanta exotica in Mexic va aranja lucrurile si ca vor putea sa-si salveze familia. La plecare insa rateaza imbarcarea in avion si sotia sa pleaca impreuna cu fata lor. La scurt timp, incercand sa prinda o noua cursa spre Acapulco, Frank afla ca avionul in care erau cele doua s-a prabusit si nimeni nu a supravietuit.
Urmeaza apoi descrierea corvoadei de proceduri dupa un dezastru aviatic si cititorul e martor la gandurile si sentimentele protagonistului. Din pacate acesta e destul de antipatic si detestabil.
Cartea prezinta cronica unui dezastru aviatic dar si dezumanizarea si decaderea lui Frank. Protagonistul mi-a lasat o impresie neplacuta fiind cinic, schizoid, poate nebun si deviant sexual, toate intr-un mod foarte stanjenitor si neplacut. Cititorul simte ca nu vrea sa parcurga toata aceasta naratiune alaturi de el. Ca sa exemplific :
- Fetita lui de 3 anisori plange iar el e rece si indiferent. Apoi isi paraseste amanta pe un ton glacial si expeditiv, ea plange iar el nu simte nimic.
- Isi anunta sotia ca a inselat-o printr-o scrisoare destul de formala, ea e disperata, el nu simte nimic.
- Sotia si fata lui mor in avion, toti din jurul lui jelesc, urla - el nu simte nimic gandindu-se la propria erectie.
Asadar, cum reiese si din titlu, cred ca autorul a vrut sa sugereze ca protagonistul este ca un mort-viu, insa modul absurd in care este construit nu ajuta cititorul sa empatizeze cu el.
In incheiere, mi-ar fi placut mai mult daca povestea s-ar fi dus intr-o zona SF-horror. Evident cu orice alt protagonist.
Atasez si doua citate care mi-au ramas in minte:
"Si in ce consta avantajul? In viata, fireste. Si al vietii? In curajul ei! Iar din intreaga experienta de viata, ce lectie merita sa iei cu tine? Sa nu te temi si, eliberat de dorinta de putere si noblete, sa patrunzi dincolo de banalitatea inspaimantatoare a multimii."
"Ce minunat mod de a seduce. Ce nume ametitor pentru un parfum: Adevarul. Cu ce parfum va dati? Cu Adevarul."
"Among the dead" a aparut in 1993 si il are in prim-plan pe Frank Gale ce ii marturiseste printr-o scrisoare sotiei ca a inselat-o cu o colega. El spera ca o vacanta exotica in Mexic va aranja lucrurile si ca vor putea sa-si salveze familia. La plecare insa rateaza imbarcarea in avion si sotia sa pleaca impreuna cu fata lor. La scurt timp, incercand sa prinda o noua cursa spre Acapulco, Frank afla ca avionul in care erau cele doua s-a prabusit si nimeni nu a supravietuit.
Urmeaza apoi descrierea corvoadei de proceduri dupa un dezastru aviatic si cititorul e martor la gandurile si sentimentele protagonistului. Din pacate acesta e destul de antipatic si detestabil.
Cartea prezinta cronica unui dezastru aviatic dar si dezumanizarea si decaderea lui Frank. Protagonistul mi-a lasat o impresie neplacuta fiind cinic, schizoid, poate nebun si deviant sexual, toate intr-un mod foarte stanjenitor si neplacut. Cititorul simte ca nu vrea sa parcurga toata aceasta naratiune alaturi de el. Ca sa exemplific :
- Fetita lui de 3 anisori plange iar el e rece si indiferent. Apoi isi paraseste amanta pe un ton glacial si expeditiv, ea plange iar el nu simte nimic.
- Isi anunta sotia ca a inselat-o printr-o scrisoare destul de formala, ea e disperata, el nu simte nimic.
- Sotia si fata lui mor in avion, toti din jurul lui jelesc, urla - el nu simte nimic gandindu-se la propria erectie.
Asadar, cum reiese si din titlu, cred ca autorul a vrut sa sugereze ca protagonistul este ca un mort-viu, insa modul absurd in care este construit nu ajuta cititorul sa empatizeze cu el.
In incheiere, mi-ar fi placut mai mult daca povestea s-ar fi dus intr-o zona SF-horror. Evident cu orice alt protagonist.
Atasez si doua citate care mi-au ramas in minte:
"Si in ce consta avantajul? In viata, fireste. Si al vietii? In curajul ei! Iar din intreaga experienta de viata, ce lectie merita sa iei cu tine? Sa nu te temi si, eliberat de dorinta de putere si noblete, sa patrunzi dincolo de banalitatea inspaimantatoare a multimii."
"Ce minunat mod de a seduce. Ce nume ametitor pentru un parfum: Adevarul. Cu ce parfum va dati? Cu Adevarul."
February 10, 2022
This book held my attention with its often stream-of-consciousness meanderings by the protagonist Frank, whose wife and toddler daughter are killed in an airplane crash caused by a lunatic airline employee. Frank should have been on the plane with them but he missed the flight after a too long “I’m dumping you” lunch with the woman he’s been having an affair with. Ground and airspace covered in addition to Frank’s thoughts and feelings about the crash itself and the eradication of his nuclear family and, to all intents and purposes, his own life, include intimate and horrifying conversations with airline employees, Frank’s brother and parents, law enforcers, lawyers, Frank’s dumpee Mary, news reporters, and the occasional bystander in the form of a taxi driver or a hotel clerk, and everyone has an agenda. It’s brilliant but I really wish I hadn’t read it because it’s also a depressing tale which strips naked a lot of the core of contemporary American culture. I can’t give it 5 stars because of my misery and I can’t give it 1 star because it’s a truly extraordinary black comedy, so I’m just settling at 4. Be aware that if you read it, you’ll be as disturbed as awed by what the author pulled off here.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
July 5, 2021
I read this book back in the early/mid 90s, and could remember very little of it beyond the general premise - so I decided to read it again, and am definitely glad that I did. I think Tolkin has a very distinctive voice and style, and his lead character’s inner thoughts are regularly entertaining, and feel like they have a quality of authenticity that sets his work apart.
August 15, 2020
don’t know why i finished, wordy, don’t like the main character
November 2, 2023
This is on my Mount Griefmore along with The Stranger, Agee's A Death in the Family, and the Captain Beefheart song "I'm Glad"
March 6, 2017
Uuugh...this one was a struggle for me to get through.
March 29, 2012
I'm guessing that many people start this book because of the synopsis, thinking this would be a cathartic companion piece to something schmaltzy like THE DESCENDANTS (to be fair, I only saw the movie). Those people must hate AMONG THE DEAD.
If there was even an inkling of sentimentality here it went down with the plane. The set-up is seemingly simple: LA man cheats on wife, but decides he wants to work on marriage, and calls off his affair; he writes a letter to wife explaining that he cheated, but also that he wants to make things work--sire that second baby she's been pining for. He plans to give wife letter while vacationing, safely nestled in their Mexican hotel suite; he'll leave his wife alone while he takes his daughter out for a stroll along the beach. He imagines. Instead, wife reads the letter before she and the daughter get on the plane. Man misses the plane because he was bidding a long adieu to his lover. Plane crashes. That's when the story takes off.
Not since Joseph Heller's SOMETHING HAPPENED have I read anything quite as disturbingly dark, misanthropic, and hilarious. And yet, I'm not recommending this book to anyone.
If there was even an inkling of sentimentality here it went down with the plane. The set-up is seemingly simple: LA man cheats on wife, but decides he wants to work on marriage, and calls off his affair; he writes a letter to wife explaining that he cheated, but also that he wants to make things work--sire that second baby she's been pining for. He plans to give wife letter while vacationing, safely nestled in their Mexican hotel suite; he'll leave his wife alone while he takes his daughter out for a stroll along the beach. He imagines. Instead, wife reads the letter before she and the daughter get on the plane. Man misses the plane because he was bidding a long adieu to his lover. Plane crashes. That's when the story takes off.
Not since Joseph Heller's SOMETHING HAPPENED have I read anything quite as disturbingly dark, misanthropic, and hilarious. And yet, I'm not recommending this book to anyone.
December 23, 2012
I seem to be on a roll with biting, satirical novel (see review of "Erasure").
This is a brilliant study of a man-in-decline, with interior monologues that singe the soul. Tolkin is the author of "The Player" and writer/director of the close-to-the-bone film, "The Rapture." Protagonist Frank Gale misses a flight that his wife and 3-year-old daughter are on, because he lingered too long over his last lunch with his mistress. When the flight from LA to Mexico crashes in San Diego, Frank Gale's psyche goes down with it. I read this book with the fascination I would have watching a department manager at Macy's telling his boss to go f--k himself. You want to turn away, but you can't help watching -- and taking notes!
This is a brilliant study of a man-in-decline, with interior monologues that singe the soul. Tolkin is the author of "The Player" and writer/director of the close-to-the-bone film, "The Rapture." Protagonist Frank Gale misses a flight that his wife and 3-year-old daughter are on, because he lingered too long over his last lunch with his mistress. When the flight from LA to Mexico crashes in San Diego, Frank Gale's psyche goes down with it. I read this book with the fascination I would have watching a department manager at Macy's telling his boss to go f--k himself. You want to turn away, but you can't help watching -- and taking notes!
October 5, 2007
I don't know if I should finish this book because I don't like it, but would like to know where it's going. Often I find myself rolling my eyes and thinking the author clearly hasn't experienced any tragedy like the one he writes about.
October 1, 2015
Not bad; kind of read like a nonfiction book. A few surprises along the way....
Displaying 1 - 15 of 15 reviews