Bright, Precious Days

June 20, 2016
McInerney (The Good Life), in his first novel in nearly a decade, plunges again into the depths of married life in post-9/11 New York City. Hardworking parents to twins, Russell and Corrine Calloway are the embodiment of a strong relationship—the couple all their friends look to and envy. Russell, a respected editor for a small fiction publisher, pines for a bygone New York City full of energy and the vanguard of the global art scene, a way of life he tries to emulate at work and with his popular, old-fashioned dinner parties. Tired of her life of cocktail parties and charity benefits, Corrine left her high-powered corporate job in the wake of 9/11 to work for an organization feeding the poor. After reconnecting with an old fling, Corrine is thrown into a tailspin of dishonesty, betrayal, and emotional turmoil. Underpinning the main narrative is the story of Jeff, Russell’s best friend from college, who dies tragically young, leaving a novel behind for Russell to edit and publish. Jeff’s novel centers on a twisted love triangle—a fictionalized version of Jeff, Russell, and Corrine—and the wild days in gritty and glamorous 1980s New York. McInerney’s tale is an astute examination of the ebbs and flows of a marriage in tumultuous times—coming to terms with unfinished relationships, the struggle to stay sane during chaotic events, and the strength to rebuild in a city ravaged by drugs, terrorism, and economic depression.