FICTION

The Unchangeable Spots of Leopards

by Kristopher Jansma
Viking. Mar. 2013. 272p. ISBN 9780670026005. $26.95; ebk. ISBN 9781101606131. F
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The turbulent relationship among three college friends is the raw material of this captivating first novel. While attending a small Massachusetts college, the North Carolina-born narrator, an aspiring writer, meets the talented but troubled Julian, also a writer, and they quickly become friends as well as artistic competitors. Julian introduces him to the mercurial Evelyn, a beautiful, young New York actress, and the two become lovers. After college, all paths lead to New York City; later, there's an eventful trip to the Grand Canyon for Evelyn's wedding and a decade's parting. The unnamed narrator then embarks on travels through Asia, Africa, and finally to an Icelandic writers' colony where he reunites with Julian.
VERDICT Jansma explores how events are shaped into a work of fiction while also showing how we weave the reality of our lives into our own personal narratives. Ultimately, he's concerned with discovering the truth of the self that lies both within and beneath that narrative. A smart, searching debut about art and identity. [See Prepub Alert, 9/24/12.]
Reviewed by Lawrence Rungren, Merrimack Valley Lib. Consortium, Andover, MA , Feb 01, 2013
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