witty lines or farcical situations, butnshe points out how those things thatnmake up the “right” society in thatncorridor centered in New York Citynand running up through the poshnsuburbs in Connecticut—the conventions,nmanners, fashions and opinionsn—are out of sync with regard to livingnin the real world rather than in thatncreated by the media. It’s not that thenglittering world didn’t always exist, butnthe society-page news is now front-pagennews, and everybody likes to see hisnname in the papers.nThe characters often act like automatonsnrather than people. But they arendepicted so adroitly that it can be hardnto detect the humor. A few years back,nthere was a popular doll on the marketnthat would utter one of several messagesnwhen you pulled a string in its side.nIn the novel, when something happens,npeople act in an equally fixed manner.nFor example, if they want to expressnan emotion, they typically do it with anmessage from a rock song. “Heart ofnGlass” by the New Wave group Blondienis heard throughout the novel, and thencharacters (many of them, that is) identifynwith it. It should be noted that thenmusic recorded by that group has anmechanical precision; the joy of musicnis foreign to it. When Mary’s summerschoolnteacher hears about the shooting,nshe wonders if she should quote ElvisnCostello’s song “Accidents Will Happen.”nCostello used to be a computernprogrammer before becoming a rocker.nThe children in Falling in Place aren’tnthe only ones who have a fixation onnwhatever is in vogue.nA he most comic figure is JohnnKnapp, father of Mary, John Joel andnBrandt, and husband of Louise. Biologi­ncal father and nominal husband. Thinkingnabout wishes, he knows that hisnwould be “that his family all disappearnin a puff of smoke, and that he couldnstart all over again with Nina.” Ninanis John’s lady love, a woman in hernmidtwenties who lives in the City. She’snbetter all around for a life of art. John’snfamily—to use the word loosely—livesnin New Haven. That is, the family exceptnfor the baby, Brandt, and John.nThey live in Rye, New York, with John’snmother. That setup just “sort of” happened,nand it makes John happy becausenit’s an easier commute into his job at annad agency and closer to Nina’s apartment.nThat’s as far as John’s sense ofnresponsibility goes. He thinks he is anslick character, that his family has nonidea of what his other identity is, butnhe is only deceiving himself, and thatndeception is something of a banana peelnin his path.nJohn also gets his coordinates fornthinking from the hip scene. That is,nhe has a problem with Louise, so henthinks about it in terms of charactersnfrom the film Saturday Night Fever—nand turns on his radio and gets the appropriatendisco beat to reverberate innhis empty skull. He looks at a photographnof his daughter which was takenna few years back at the beach at Nantucket.nShe is wearing a bathing suitnwith gingerbread men on it. Does henlook at this and think: gingerbread men,nnursery rhymes and fairy tales.? No. Itnreminds him of the character Mr. Billnfrom the “Saturday Night Live” TVnprogram, the dough-like figure that isnroutinely torn apart, blown up andnotherwise destroyed. John sees himselfnas a member of the trendy set, as livingnthe “right” life.nHis family wants to make a returnnnnto Nantucket, perhaps in an effort tonsalvage whatever is left. He thinks:n”What would I do with them in Nantucket.-“nGo to the beach. Sail. Watchnclouds change shape. Buy fudge. Postncards.” That’s not chic enough for hisnlifestyle. He’d rather sit around innNina’s perfect little apartment, smokenpot, and go to one of the “right” placesnto eat. Or, of course, he could go tonNantucket with Nina and do the sailclouds-fudgenroutine, which would thennbe precisely the thing to do.nWhen his son shoots his daughternand his wife tells him their farce of anmarriage is over—when John finallynslips on the banana peel—his shoddynlittle world slides out from under him.nHe doesn’t act like any sort of bulwarknfor his children who need help; his onlynreaction is to think over and over again,n”His son had shot his daughter.” Mary,nwounded, with a bullet hole in her, couldnget more comfort from a Peter Framptonnposter. He doesn’t help his wifenduring the troubled period. Instead, henhops in his car and drives fast to thenCity. That’s one of the things he likesnto do on occasion: drive fast—it makesnhim feel that he’s taking risks. He getsnto his mistress’ apartment early in thenmorning; she opens the door wearingna robe that’s partially open, and he seesnbehind her a man who has obviouslynspent the night. Does John charge innand take control of the situation.”nHardly. He ends up drinking coffee withnhis rival. Violence would be gauche—nor perhaps he spent himself on the fastndrive.nShould John Joel take his father as anrole model and hope to grow up and benjust like dear old (constantly trying tonbe young) Dad.’ How about Mary andnher mother.? Louise does little else besidesnidolize one of her girlfriends whonhas a Ph.D., teaches at N.Y.U., andnspends her time explicating fairy talesnfrom a feminist point of view. Teachersnwere once thought to be moral leadersnfor young people, but not in the comedynthat’s the world today. Cynthia Forrest,nwmmmmmmmmmmm^mmmnXovember/December 1980n