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D.H. Lawrence, Herb Liebman, Amy Goodman
The Horse Fly, September 15, 2006
Herb’s novel is a coming-of-age story in reverse: the older we get, the more innocent and free we become. “A Place for Lily” features a Jewish protagonist and Coney Island native, Kenneth Diamond, who is a 60-year-old college English professor and off-off Broadway playwright, gradually discarding and being discarded by friends and family. His bitchy Brit wife leaves him, despite marriage counseling, and he moves his mother, Lily, from her Coney Island apartment to a home, where she dies. His 22-year-old son leaves Staten Island for Albuquerque, where he promptly gets busted for drugs. Even his callow college students (including the delectable Sally Flynn, a tease to whom he succumbs) eventually reject him. He gives up his tenured professorship. Finally, a cruel critic savages his off-off Broadway play. (Geez, I can’t wait to turn 60, Herb.) Still, as any man truly knows, one creature remains forever loyal: Duncan, his dog, an Airedale and Kenneth’s best friend. As Kenneth says, “Duncan just keeps moving along proudly. The wisdom of animals, Kenneth thought, the simple wisdom of animals.” (Perhaps Duncan could do a cameo for Four Corners Animal League.)
The full text of this article can be found at The Horse Fly.
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