Money's like Styrofoam

A novel on the compromise between protection and peril

Hello readers,

Is it a spoiler to note that a fire plays a significant role in a novel when it’s right there in the cover art?

Long Island Compromise is a novel that, from the cover image to the first and last lines, makes sure you won’t miss a thing. It’s very contemporary in this way, and my theory as to why fiction authors explain so often now has to do with the reality that nonfiction—from journalism to the words out of the mouths of those in a position of authority—has become less truth-oriented in the past decade. Therefore, fiction has also become more blended, taking on an aspect of nonfiction storytelling in which the writer tells people what they’ve told them. Have you noticed this, too?

Convincingly making this point about why U.S. fiction authors are stealing the book reviewers’ thunder so often of late will require more evidence than I’ve assembled today, but here’s one case for your consideration, on the eve of the inauguration of the liar-in-chief.

Money’s like styrofoam

In…