In the summer of 1957, a disconcerting question regularly surfaced at Wind Song, the vacation compound of Dr. Carl Edison and his wife Estelle. They wondered whether Marc Gold would succeed with Marta Mills or with their daughter Merissa, adopted in infancy from Korea. The doctor believed that Marc, in his youthful voyage of self-discovery, still had several stops to make along the way; and Estelle felt certain that the journey would challenge all involved. They both knew that in matters of the heart, choice often invites indecision, especially when nostalgia for another becomes a disquieting memory.
Thus begins this novel of love set against a background of boating and romance in three countries—and ends with a telephone call, a bedside visit, a eulogy, and an affirmation of love…
By Paul M. Levitt
2022
This is a novel about love, and in the dying words of the main characters, “what might have been.” But what might have been becomes a labyrinth where loving and being loved by more than one person forces choices and loss. Although the story is told by different characters, all are present as very believable human beings with whom we find ourselves deeply engaged. Set in three countries, each scene is painted in vivid and familiar detail. Rowing to Ithaca is an absorbing and profoundly thoughtful work of art.
— H. Bruce Franklin, author of Crash Course and many other books The John Cotton Dana Professor of English and American Studies, Rutgers-Newark, Emeritus
Paul Levitt here delivers another riveting novel, this time a coming-of-age story that focuses on” “he complexity and confusion of first love. Rowing to Ithaca grabs your attention from the first lines and takes you on a transatlantic joy-and-sorrow ride that ends in the American west, jealousies still unresolved. Through his ill-starred central character, Marc Gold, Levitt challenges us to consider whether conscience and memory can ever be assuaged. His answer will surprise.
— Philip F. Gura, Newman Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
There is so much to admire in Rowing to Ithaca, its unity of purpose and unity of construction, Levitt’s wonderful array of skills in bringing to life believable characters and the twists and turns of an original plot. He has produced yet another first-class novel, one that grips the reader via his meticulous craftsmanship and one that truly deserves a wide readership.
―Peter Thabit Jones, Welsh poet and dramatist Author (with Aeronwy Thomas) of Dylan Thomas Walking Tour of Greenwich Village
More by Paul M. Levitt
See all works by Paul M. Levitt