Book review of The Rest of Our Lives by Benjamin Markovits – An American Road Trip with a Twist | imaginary

AAt the beginning of The Rest of Our Lives, we learn that Tom, a 55-year-old law professor from New York, plans to leave his wife as soon as he sends their youngest child off to college. Tom and Amy have been together for 30 years. He believes their marriage is a “C-minus marriage” that was torn apart beyond repair when Amy had an affair 12 years ago. And so, after leaving their daughter Miriam at college in Pittsburgh, he continues driving, visiting old friends and places in search of his departed youth.

Benjamin Markowitz’s twelfth novel – shortlisted for this year’s Booker Prize – can be seen as a companion piece to Miranda July’s acclaimed All Four in its exploration of midlife dissatisfaction. Tom is not a reliable narrator of his life, although he is nonetheless a compelling protagonist even in moments of blatant self-deception.

Voice actor Eric Myers is the narrator who expertly conveys Tom’s mounting discontent, even if there is a slight quality to his voice for the female characters. We gradually discover that there are broader issues making Tom miserable, from a raging illness he imagines to be long Covid, about which he has so far refused to see a doctor, to a forced layoff from his job after complaints from his students. Tom, who has not told his wife about the difficulties of his work, clearly believes that he is guilty of more than one sin. But like July’s unsung heroine in All Fours, he finds freedom and a new perspective on the open road.

Available via Faber, 6 hours 56 minutes.

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