18% Gray

March 4, 2013
Karabashliev, the eponymous main character of Karabashlievâs debut novel, is experiencing a major life crisis. Once a passionate photographer, Zack moved with his wife Stella to the United States from Bulgaria, the authorâs native home, to attend graduate school. After running out of money, Zack sells his camera equipment and lies to get a job at a pharmaceutical company in Southern California. Just as Stellaâs painting career takes off, she abruptly leaves, fed up with Zackâs conforming to middle-class life. The sudden vacancy sets Zack off an impromptu journey, starting with an impulsive trip to Tijuana, Mexico, where he mistakenly steals a large amount of marijuana. With a contact in New York City, Zack takes off on a transcontinental journey with a new camera, rediscovering his passion and undergoing a personal revelation. Though inconsistent, when author Karabashliev remains unselfconscious, heâs fast-paced, quick-witted, and filled with childish humor in his perspective of a Bulgarian living the drab American Dream and discovering that he hates it.