A Good American follows the story of a family, from Frederick and Jette who immigrate from Germany in 1904, through their son Joseph and daughter Rosa, through James, the narrator, and his 3 brothers and their subsequent families. It spans close to 100 years of American history as played out in this particular family’s life, interwoven throughout with the story of music.
Music is what first creates this family. Jette is a singular young German woman, six feet tall and given to walking energetically rather than mincing about. Frederick admires her from afar, and hides behind a privet hedge to serenade her with operas. She responds, they fall in love, and soon they are meeting in secret, since their union is not met with approval by Jette’s parents. Eventually, faced with an unplanned pregnancy and due to Jette’s theft of a family medal made of solid gold, the two decide to flee to America to start life anew. They take a boat that lands in New Orleans. By this point Jette is nearing the end of her pregnancy, and she stays in the hotel while Frederick wanders the streets where he hears and is amazed at New Orleans jazz. The new family end up settling in a small town in Missouri (whose name and history are as funny as Blaine, Missouri, for those of you familiar with Waiting for Guffman). Although all of his descendents inherit his amazing vocal talents, few of them inherit Frederick’s comfortableness on stage and with public performances. Frederick ends up running first the town bar and then the town restaurant, and his menu, musical offerings, and staff soon represent the American melting pot at its finest.
There are tales of small town life, of the fortunes of the family, of secrets hidden and discovered, of regrets and rejoicing. There are funny anecdotes along the way—Frederick hires a Polish bartender to teach him English but the man takes his money and teaches him Polish instead; Joseph can’t sing a note in front of anyone but stands and moves his mouth and body as if pouring out his soul in song. There are several unforgettable characters too; a sweet and gentle giant whose death brings love between two of his favorite people; a small-town minister who takes a vow to never cut his hair until a certain man comes to church; a pet raccoon that acts like part of the family.
Frederick is really the “good American” of the title, although if you consider the various characters you could argue that there are many others, depending on your definition of both “good” and “american.” The parts of the story that focus on his life are in my opinion the best bits, although the rest of the family is interesting too. A Good American takes a look at how the history of a family can echo the history of a nation while at the same time representing nothing grander than the joys and heartaches of everyday life.
Elizabeth, like most of you, is descended from European immigrants. Read more at her blog Planet Nomad.
Barb says
I love books that span multiple generations (if it’s done well, of course). That interweaving of history and the personal stories of the characters is always so interesting.