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The Liberty Campaign
Combining finely tuned suspense with provocative insights into the nature of good and evil, The Liberty Campaign is a novel of stunning psychological depth and power.
Gene Trowbridge, a sixty-five-year-old successful advertising executive, fills the days before his retirement assessing his past and considering the future. A deliberate and thoughtful man, Gene lives a solid, peaceful existence with his wife in a genteel Long Island suburb, watching on television the failure of his son Jack's professional baseball career and increasingly aware of his own displacement in a field dominated by the very young. But a chance meeting with Albert Ferdinand, a reclusive neighbor who wins his regard and friendship, upsets the tenuous balance of Gene's world. From the scandal that comes to surround Ferdinand, Gene is brought face to face with the unimaginable depths of cruelty that lie well beyond his complacent suburban community. Spurred on by a persistent journalist and overwhelmed by self-doubt stemming from his instinctive liking and acceptance of a man of potentially indescribable evil, Gene is drawn into a suspenseful search for the truth about Ferdinand's past. In The Liberty Campaign , critically acclaimed author Jonathan Dee has created one of the wisest and most memorable voices in recent fiction. When Gene is ultimately presented with a stark ethical choice and forced to reevaluate his judgment and his principles, Dee captures, with extraordinary precision and power, the vulnerable time in the life of an aging man when he falters, not sure that his own life experience has provided him with the ability to act. The Liberty Campaign is a riveting, multilayered portrait of an ordinary man whose moral universe is tested by a situation that defies the parameters of his decidedly American upbringing and sensibility.
Gene Trowbridge, a sixty-five-year-old successful advertising executive, fills the days before his retirement assessing his past and considering the future. A deliberate and thoughtful man, Gene lives a solid, peaceful existence with his wife in a genteel Long Island suburb, watching on television the failure of his son Jack's professional baseball career and increasingly aware of his own displacement in a field dominated by the very young. But a chance meeting with Albert Ferdinand, a reclusive neighbor who wins his regard and friendship, upsets the tenuous balance of Gene's world. From the scandal that comes to surround Ferdinand, Gene is brought face to face with the unimaginable depths of cruelty that lie well beyond his complacent suburban community. Spurred on by a persistent journalist and overwhelmed by self-doubt stemming from his instinctive liking and acceptance of a man of potentially indescribable evil, Gene is drawn into a suspenseful search for the truth about Ferdinand's past. In The Liberty Campaign , critically acclaimed author Jonathan Dee has created one of the wisest and most memorable voices in recent fiction. When Gene is ultimately presented with a stark ethical choice and forced to reevaluate his judgment and his principles, Dee captures, with extraordinary precision and power, the vulnerable time in the life of an aging man when he falters, not sure that his own life experience has provided him with the ability to act. The Liberty Campaign is a riveting, multilayered portrait of an ordinary man whose moral universe is tested by a situation that defies the parameters of his decidedly American upbringing and sensibility.
- GenresFiction
288 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1993
1 person is currently reading
103 people want to read
About the author
Jonathan Dee
11 books205 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
Jonathan Dee is the author of six novels. He is a staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, a frequent contributor to Harper's, and a former senior editor of The Paris Review. He teaches in the graduate writing programs at Columbia University and the New School.
Jonathan Dee is the author of six novels. He is a staff writer for The New York Times Magazine, a frequent contributor to Harper's, and a former senior editor of The Paris Review. He teaches in the graduate writing programs at Columbia University and the New School.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
February 16, 2013
Man, I find these 3 star books the hardest to review. The stories are usually ok - thought provoking to be sure - but they generally lack that wow factor that can blow your mind or sweep you into far and wonderous realms or ideas that just stick to your brain for days. These 3-star stories are usually well written and have a subject matter that can, and usually do, equally frustrate and excite you so you want to both praise it for the great parts and pan it for the flaws.
In truth, I found this book would be a lot better when read in a group and discussed in depth, because I do feel there is a lot of depth to the story - mulitple layers and innuendos of the American dream and what it actually produces in it's people and what that actually says about it's people. It's the double edge sword of what being American is - self sufficient and out going , yet being myopic and reticent about the rest of the world and how it affects their morals when they have to take a stand for others.
The book sways between this aspect of duality all through the story, following one character's life and career as he comes up to the looming prospect of retirement and his accidental friendship he strikes up with a reclusive controversial neighbour that harbours a terrible secret. It then becomes a story of a pendulum swinging between the desire to know and what to do about the knowledge gained. All the while he's also becoming aware of the looking glass and all that looks back - all the choices in ones life and where it's lead him to. It's the unvarnished truth that's hard to look at and heavy to bear. It's the understanding of choice and choices, of action or inaction that ultimately shapes you. And it's not always pretty to see or easy to handle.
But it's a start to become real.
It's a choice.
An interesting book to be sure. There were times when the author would relay something that would absolutely sum whatever up perfectly - beautifully written and concise. Not an easy thing to do. Then there were times I felt he prattled on. But then I wasn't sure if it was a subtle aspect he did to help with the swinging back and forth. I found how the book was set up a little disconcerting as well - no chapters, just two parts split smack dab down the middle of the story, with 'pauses' as the story continued but no real breaks. It was hard to put down and pick up..... or at least it was hard to get back at it if you left it too long. It's not a book to pick up and down that's for sure and reads better if you read it in a short time line. The split felt perfect though - a definite feeling of hitting the top of the climb and a downhill journey from there.
In truth, I found this book would be a lot better when read in a group and discussed in depth, because I do feel there is a lot of depth to the story - mulitple layers and innuendos of the American dream and what it actually produces in it's people and what that actually says about it's people. It's the double edge sword of what being American is - self sufficient and out going , yet being myopic and reticent about the rest of the world and how it affects their morals when they have to take a stand for others.
The book sways between this aspect of duality all through the story, following one character's life and career as he comes up to the looming prospect of retirement and his accidental friendship he strikes up with a reclusive controversial neighbour that harbours a terrible secret. It then becomes a story of a pendulum swinging between the desire to know and what to do about the knowledge gained. All the while he's also becoming aware of the looking glass and all that looks back - all the choices in ones life and where it's lead him to. It's the unvarnished truth that's hard to look at and heavy to bear. It's the understanding of choice and choices, of action or inaction that ultimately shapes you. And it's not always pretty to see or easy to handle.
But it's a start to become real.
It's a choice.
An interesting book to be sure. There were times when the author would relay something that would absolutely sum whatever up perfectly - beautifully written and concise. Not an easy thing to do. Then there were times I felt he prattled on. But then I wasn't sure if it was a subtle aspect he did to help with the swinging back and forth. I found how the book was set up a little disconcerting as well - no chapters, just two parts split smack dab down the middle of the story, with 'pauses' as the story continued but no real breaks. It was hard to put down and pick up..... or at least it was hard to get back at it if you left it too long. It's not a book to pick up and down that's for sure and reads better if you read it in a short time line. The split felt perfect though - a definite feeling of hitting the top of the climb and a downhill journey from there.
June 13, 2010
The voice of the narrator, a renowned ad man now about to retire, is so dry that there were a few times I nearly gave up on him. But the story of this man and his family, in their wealthy suburb, has a great hook: a neighbor is rumored to be a former torturer from Brazil. Our narrator, Gene, is compelled to find the truth about this man's past. If the rumor turns out to be true, he wants to know more. He wants to know how the man thinks, how he felt during his tenure as a torturer, how he can live with himself now.
Gene pursues his neighbor, Ferdinand, and they become companions. They stroll on the beach with Ferdinand's dog while discussing the situation. A mysterious van is parked outside Ferdinand's house for weeks. Gene enters through the garden in the evenings and they continue their talks. Alone, Gene ponders questions about good and evil and so on. Gene's wife finds out that the neighbors are beside themselves with gossip about Gene's friendship with Ferdinand. She is furious. Their marriage, or at least their feelings about it, falters. Meanwhile, arrangements for the retirement dinner progress. Gene and Ellie's son Jack is a major league pitcher who is losing his grip. They watch his games faithfully and worry.
As the novel develops Gene's dry, matter-of-fact writing goes on and on. Fortunately, it's a great story. Is a man the same man he was 20 years ago? Is a murderess still a murderess after 40 years in prison? Is a married couple the same people they were after 50 years of marriage? Read Gene and worry along with him.
Gene pursues his neighbor, Ferdinand, and they become companions. They stroll on the beach with Ferdinand's dog while discussing the situation. A mysterious van is parked outside Ferdinand's house for weeks. Gene enters through the garden in the evenings and they continue their talks. Alone, Gene ponders questions about good and evil and so on. Gene's wife finds out that the neighbors are beside themselves with gossip about Gene's friendship with Ferdinand. She is furious. Their marriage, or at least their feelings about it, falters. Meanwhile, arrangements for the retirement dinner progress. Gene and Ellie's son Jack is a major league pitcher who is losing his grip. They watch his games faithfully and worry.
As the novel develops Gene's dry, matter-of-fact writing goes on and on. Fortunately, it's a great story. Is a man the same man he was 20 years ago? Is a murderess still a murderess after 40 years in prison? Is a married couple the same people they were after 50 years of marriage? Read Gene and worry along with him.
August 18, 2022
Such depth for a novel about an ad exec (who meets a war criminal).
October 8, 2017
This is a very peculiar book. It's a small book, 250 pages maybe, yet a slow read. Slow yet multi-layered. It negotiates four big themes and does so rather well, if only you are kept interested. One is kept interested for large portions because of the author's dry tone, which I thought was awesome. There's a formality of expression, which I don't come across often so I appreciate when I do. Our protagonist, I thought was really unpleasant, but revealed so by degrees. I guess its most prominent peculiarity is that it makes you want more, yet, at the same time, less of it.
August 30, 2019
It’s about life, with a little spice and suspense! Not for everyone, for sure; I happen to enjoy Jonathan Dee’s novels. You do or you don’t, right?
August 18, 2023
I really love this author, so I was so happy to find a copy of this one. The writing and story have such a retro feel, it reads like Raymond Carver or John Cheever or something. Really enjoyed this.
May 16, 2024
it took me a week and half to finish the last ten pages…
December 15, 2013
"The Liberty Campaign" a very introspection-heavy novel, focusing on the thoughts of a soon-to-be-65 marketing executive. The main character is forced to reconsider his life when faced with his looming retirement, his son's waning career as a professional baseball player, and the discovery that his long time neighbor may or may not be a former Brazilian war criminal in hiding. Though the last item in that list might seem a little shocking it actually gets about the same page count as the other two topics, which, balanced against the whole of the protagonists life is highly appropriate. The very fact that in the suburbs people can sit around and inactively contemplate a neighbor's alleged war crimes is one of the revelations the narrator sits around and inactively contemplates.
The book asks and doesn't quite answer a lot of questions about our ability to know evil and judge others, about the what it is that make someone's life successful, and about the nature of repenting and forgiveness.
The book asks and doesn't quite answer a lot of questions about our ability to know evil and judge others, about the what it is that make someone's life successful, and about the nature of repenting and forgiveness.
December 2, 2013
Enjoyed the writing and the author's introspective voice reminding me a little of Phillip Roth. However I kept waiting for there to be more 'pop', twist or surprise in the story and that never came. Whether with the retirement party speech, revelations about Gene's wife, son or even the neighbor; I was waiting for more. A mash-up between this story and "Gone Girl" for example ... now that gets my 4th or 5th star.
May 19, 2012
Great take on male relationships (father/son, neighbor to neighbor) and the relative nature of "truth." Meditative, occasionally even slow, perhaps, but I loved every second of it.
June 2, 2013
Impressive first novel.
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews