Union Atlantic

Haslett's debut novel begins by introducing each of its complex, slightly flawed characters separately and then slowly bringing their stories together. A Boston banker is battling a history teacher over the rights to a piece of land. Narrator David Aaron Baker keeps the pace slow and even, drawing the listener in to the building drama. However, there are have some pronunciation missteps and some awkward sentences where he seems to lose his way. Overall, Baker deftly handles the male voices with a variety of intonations and cadences, but he is not as strong with the females. His best voices come across when he can be the most creative--in the words of the female protagonist's constant companions, her dogs, who become more vocal as the story progresses, allowing Baker to develop distinct speech that matches their personalities. E.N. (c) AudioFile 2010, Portland, Maine

Starred review from December 21, 2009
In Haslett's excellent first novel (following Pulitzer and National Book Award finalist short story collection You Are Not a Stranger Here
), a titan of the banking industry does battle with a surprisingly formidable opponent: a retired history teacher. Doug Fanning has built Union Atlantic from a mid-size Boston bank to an international powerhouse and rewards himself by building a rural palace in Finden, Mass. The land his house is built on, however, had been donated to Finden for preservation by Charlotte Graves's grandfather, and Charlotte believes she now has a claim on the lot. She may be right, and her disdain of modern decadence means bad news for Doug should she win in court. Meanwhile, high school senior Nate Fuller, who visits Charlotte for tutoring and Doug for awkward and lopsided sexual encounters, finds himself with the power to upset the legal and cultural war game. Haslett's novel is smart and carefully constructed, and his characters are brilliantly flawed. (Charlotte's emerging instability is especially heartbreaking.) This book should be of interest to readers fascinated but perplexed by the current financial crisis, as it is able to navigate the oubliette of Wall Street trading to create searing and intimate drama.