Woke Up Lonely depicts the brutal inner honesty of being human (Copy)
Sometimes you get to read a book that is truly saying something. The words on the page are connecting not only in sentence structure with such an amazing amount of beauty and intellect, but also in your own psyche. Fiona Maazel’s Woke Up Lonely (Graywolf Press, April 2013) does just this and digs into the soul of what it means to be human and to connect, and how those connections somehow also fail us.
Woke Up Lonely‘s main proprietor of the cure of inner solitude is Thurlow Dan. A man who took it upon himself to end the epidemic of loneliness that he saw taking over his country and others. The cure: a cult, the Helix. The initial formation of this grouping was to allow those who felt a social lack and misfortune to come together, find others experiencing similar emotions and talk it out. The openness of emotions and conversations would breakdown the walls that confined the soul.
“Sometimes hurt just likes a stage.”
Except there’s one problem, where there is an innocent idea mixed with people who feel on the fringes, there will be revolt and not so-innocent actions towards people and government.
The intrigue outside of cult-behavior and culture comes from those who are equally emotionally struggling characters but yet are not willing to conform to the Helix’s ideas and changing ways. One of which being Thurlow’s ex-wife Esme, mother of his one and only daughter, and secret informant for the government for the Helix and Thurlow. Though her initial stance on the project of exposing the inner workings of this cult seem bleak for her relationship and filled with betrayal, Esme, isn’t cookie cutter and clean. She’s human. And she is longing for the one person who can fill the hole that has long been empty. She is subscribing to exactly what Thurlow is saying.
“And when you look back on your life, you’ll see it’s true: woke up lonely, and the missing were on your lips.”
The undercurrent of political relations with North Korea and what our own government chooses to share with us melds this idea of loss of companionship and community with the loss of knowledge of reality. The disguises, and lies, and masks put on stories to make them seem a little more swallowable, and much more safe, play a huge role in depicting just what it means to be a part of something. There is always a separating question of who you can trust, what is real, and who is in control.
The entirety of this book, though told in a broader and political stance, is all about the ineptitudes of relationships. How we fail one another, or thrive for one another. How we disconnect and connect, and what that means for us. It’s about moving on, acceptance, and love. It’s about letting go of all of the preconceived notions, guidelines, and expectations that we place on others without ever giving them the chance to be our champion, to be our cure.
It is masterfully written with deep grooves of humanity that will seem quiet at first, but will then linger in the reader’s mind for days. Pondering each page and battling the emotions connecting to characters who in ordinary life you would not empathize with will take hold, cause confusion and then resolve with that inner knowing that the world is not seen as clearly as we would like it to be.
“The road was narrow and ascendant one hairpin at a time, there was no guardrail, and if you went over even halfway up, you would not survive the fall. Every time Esme thought about it, she wondered whether they had any last words, too, hurled from their lips as they said good-bye. And why not? People were crying out for each other all the time.“
Maazel’s Woke Up Lonely is a masterful take on a very contemporary climate, yet still has the ability to last for ages and be able to provoke thought and emotion that is usually buried deep within. It will leave you grabbing the hand of a loved one while at the same time crying out for more information to better understand your own world that has become so mysterious.
