"Girl In The Moonlight" (published 2015)

Not many books are able to leave the reader with such powerful emotions as the novel “Girl In The Moonlight” by Charles Dubow. The feeling is almost even painful at times, and it is complex, just as much as the characters in the story are, as the story urges one to contemplate what has just been read months and months after, maybe without even realizing it. This is the mark of a great book. Moreover, a great piece of literature.

Charles Dubow gives readers access to an unquestionably elusive and exclusive world of prestige and glamour, with all its idiosyncrasies, etiquettes, and privileges. Dubow portrays families that have a lot of money, and there is nothing sugarcoated about their lives; there is nothing that makes them any “richer” than the next man. The book is a pleasure to read because it presents a gateway into a social stratum by which only the few are a part. The book also allows the reader to take note of the best works of art by reminding us of such people as Rainer Maria Rilke and Giorgio Vasari. Some may find it heartwarming to find familiar works or names mentioned within the text.

The basic plot is as follows: Wylie Rose, as a young all-American boy, meets the exotic Catalonian Francesca Bonet and falls madly in love with her (or is it lust or obsession?). His life changes forever, as she becomes a major focal point throughout his life, seemingly dictating his every desire from youth to adulthood. Cesca, as Francesca comes to be known, is extremely beautiful and has an undeniable power over men. She is untamable and wild, somewhat directionless and without any actual goals. Aurelio, Cesca’s brother, a painter, befriends Wylie and the two become extremely close and share a love for art, both admiring and creating it. These three lives intertwine for some time, are separated for whatever reason then come back together over the years while life-changing events happen along the way. There are jobs, deaths, parties… and each time they meet, as Wylie thinks he can move on from his strong impulse to have Cecsa, he simply cannot. Her gorgeousness, her smell of “jasmine and roses” - are just too intoxicating.

What’s fascinating about this story is this: is there not that one person in everyone’s life that we simply cannot forget? Someone who perhaps you’ve only met once, but made such a huge impact on you (something said, maybe a small gesture) that it was unforgettable? Perhaps someone who was so unbelievably beautiful that you know that you could simply never forget their face? Or someone from your past or in your life or maybe someone who has departed whose memories you’ve shared will never leave you? Who is *your* Cesca?

“Girl In The Moonlight” seems to be specifically about a certain question, and Dubow seems to elucidate it here:

“On the scale between love and lust, there are many stops. It is nearly impossible to define love, in English at least, because its definition, not to mention its place within our culture, is so broad. Unlike the Eskimo’s famous fifty words for snow, in English the word love means everything from how a person may feel about chocolate cake to the devotion a couple may feel after many years of marriage. Then there is maternal love, sexual love, patriotic love, aesthetic love, and much, much more besides. When John Lennon sang ‘All you need is love,’ he was playing it safe. Love can mean just about anything. It is a word of infinite nuance, but for that very reason also has a stunning inadequacy. The ancient Greeks had four words for love: eros, for physical love; agape, for spiritual love; philia, for social love, and storge, for familial love. Even that doesn’t seem like enough though. Lust, however, is love’s younger sibling. It is uncomplicated, straightforward. It relies on only one thing; egotistical desire. Lusting after something means wanting to possess it whether or not it wants to be possessed. Certainly, it is possible to desire an inanimate object, such as a car or a painting, but mostly lust is physical. The hunger one human feels for another. As with all desire, there are gradations of intensity. There are the thousand small lusts we feel every day. A man may spot a pretty girl sitting by herself at a bar, and, for a moment, he lusts after her… these lusts are easily forgotten. There are also grander lusts. Lusts that upend civilizations, destroy marriages and lives… invariably lust that is fulfilled seems to end badly. After all, there is a reason it is considered a sin.” – Chapter 15

The question is, of course, answered by the end. Many chapters in this saga develop Wylie Rose and Cesca Bonet as characters and it shouldn’t be shocking to find them extremely relatable. Layers and layers of their personality and the complications of their actions and decisions leave the conclusion/s within the story multi-faceted. There is nothing predictable about the plot and this will leave readers appreciative. Surely, all who read this book may have varying opinions about it by the the time they reach the epilogue. Perhaps silent reflection is its solemn prayer rather than an attempt to reach out for one central meaning. “Girl In The Moonlight” must be valued for its narrative depth, for it is definitely a book to return to.