Books : Fiction : Contemporary Fiction: 1970 Onwards : Authors A-Z : Z : Zappa, Moon Unit

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Books : Fiction : Contemporary Fiction: 1970 Onwards : Authors A-Z : Z : Zappa, Moon Unit

• America the Beautiful

  Moon Unit Zappa

  
  America Throne's relationship with her boyfriend Jasper was heading for a happy ending:

  I thought, my God, soon we will probably be married ... I imagined our children, a boy and a girl each with his long limbs and caffeine-free groundedness and maybe my hair and aesthetic.

  But it wasn't to be. Jasper ended the relationship by fax while on a business trip to San Francisco: "Please don't call me. I have entered another room. Love always. Jasper Husch".

  America the Beautiful, the first novel from Moon Unit Zappa, deals with the emotional fallout from this break-up. The traumatised 29-year-old America, buoyed up by her good friend Sadie, sets out on a voyage of self-discovery as her plummeting self-esteem forces her to assess the impact of her unconventional upbringing, the death of her famous father, and her ability to cope with loss. There's the requisite therapy and eccentric characters--this is LA, after all--and the overall result is a narrative of emotional honesty shot through with quirky humour.

  America shares more than an unusual moniker with her creator, Moon Unit Zappa. Both live in LA (with their dogs) and both have famous fathers--in America's case the fictional painter Boris Throne and for Moon Unit the "Mother of Invention" musician Frank Zappa. They may well have more in common, so convincingly are America's emotions conveyed:

  With Sadie's help, I could do it. The new plan was to make him come to me. He'd have to sweat out me not calling him. I climbed back into bed. "Jasper, it's me, are you there? No? Ok, I love you."

  America the Beautiful is a surprisingly accomplished novel from a new author which adds new insights to well-trodden ground. --Christina McLoughlin
  
   

• America the Beautiful

  Moon Unit Zappa

  
  America the Beautiful, the first novel from Moon Unit Zappa, deals with the emotional fallout from a relationship break-up. The traumatised 29-year-old America, buoyed up by her good friend Sadie, sets out on a voyage of self-discovery as her plummeting self-esteem forces her to assess the impact of her unconventional upbringing, the death of her famous father and her ability to cope with loss.

  When the novel opens, America Throne's relationship with her boyfriend Jasper was heading for a happy ending:

  I thought, my God, soon we will probably be married. I imagined our children, a boy and a girl each with his long limbs and caffeine-free groundedness and maybe my hair and aesthetic.

  This wasn't to be. Jasper ended the relationship by fax while on a business trip to San Francisco: "Please don't call me. I have entered another room. Love always. Jasper Husch." What ensues is a narrative of emotional honesty shot through with quirky humour, with the requisite therapy and eccentric characters--this is LA, after all.

  America shares more than an unusual moniker with her creator, Moon Unit Zappa. Both live in LA (with their dogs) and both have famous deceased fathers--in America's case the fictional painter Boris Throne and for Moon Unit the "Mother of Invention" musician Frank Zappa. They may well have more in common, so convincingly are her emotions conveyed. America the Beautiful is a surprisingly accomplished novel from a new author that adds new insights to well-trodden ground. --Christina McLoughlin