The Truth.

I had such good intentions about live blogging, but something took over my life this weekend, and that something was Harry, Revised. Ordinarily I spend, I don't know, three or four weeks per book, but from the moment I got home from work on Friday until the opening pitch of Royals - A's yesterday, I did not look away from this book. What an experience.

I don't know what more to say than "Thank you, Mark." There was just so much truth in this book, about how people can hurt each other, even when all they want to do is help; and how hard it is to forget someone, even when you know your life depends on it (I'm thinking of Lucille and her shithead son); and *SPOILER ALERT* I'm just so blown away that Harry gets the girl in the end -- and promptly gives her up! And even more amazingly, I kind of understood WHY he would ask her to leave, and it was okay with me that he did so, even though we missed out on a damn good sex scene.

Everything about this book was unique. The crazy high-falutin' language, the seemingly bizarre backwards flashbacks, a main character who sometimes seems invisible, and sometimes seems like a goddamn force of nature (I like to think that all men are a little like Harry, noble even when they're cowardly.)

And you know what was the most interesting thing today? When I walked into work, and people asked me how I spent the weekend, and I said, "With a book!" and didn't even feel like a loser. Because if Alexander Dumas can do what he did for Harry Rent, then Mark Sarvas can damn well do the same for Mike Eagle.

"Thank you, Mark."

Chapter One.

And so it begins.

And bizarrely, it began, for me, in a pizza joint. Almost a diner! Alas, unlike Harry, I did not have some hot little number waiting on me, but rather, a disinterested man behind the counter. The effect of the pizza, however, was the same as the Monte Cristo: bloating.

I really liked the line about the "time honored tradition of epiphanies." There were a bunch of great moments like that, where it was clear that Mark was playing around with "literary tricks," giving us a wink, if you will, that he KNOWS these things can be hackneyed (in lesser hands).

Love the closing line. All this time in the diner, without a hint that his important meeting is his wife's funeral??? Such restraint -- like expelling a fart outside the opera house, rather than inside.

I am more than ready to find out how this Harry Rent goes about "revising" himself, and whether it is for the good or not (me thinks it will be FTG).

Fingers Crossed.

Harry should be getting here any minute, if Amazon is to be trusted (but alas they are not). Meanwhile, I'm listening to Mark's interview on the Bat Segundo show.

http://www.edrants.com/segundo/mark-sarvas-bss-201/

First question: who is this Bat Segundo? What a strange yet wonderful name! Evoking a strange mix of Dracula and Pancho Villa -- like a vampire with a handlebar mustache.

Second question: is this really Mark's voice I am hearing? It's funny, but when I read TEV I have this very different voice in my head. Maybe it´s because he uses the Royal We. I thought he would be more, like ... I don´t know ... detached. Like royalty. But hey -- it's nice to know that he sounds like a real person. I wonder if a guy like Hemingway didn't have the enormous, knee-rattling voice I imagine but one more like Mark's. Who knows? A beard is a powerful thing.

(Anybody know where to find a recording of Hemingway online?)

Finally, I'm struggling to remember the last time I ever looked forward to a book so much. Admission: it wasn't so long ago that a Jon Krakauer book counted as a "serious read" for me, but even with a book like Into the Wild, I didn't take a look at it until my father ordered me to read it all those years ago (I still wonder if he was trying to keep me from running off to the woods like that poor kid -- if he was -- good work, Dad).

I'm wondering if perhaps it's the fact that I discovered TEV which led me to this whole wild literary "scene" -- and has me feeling this intense connection to Harry. Visiting that site just makes the world feel smaller, you know?

Thoughts, readers?

Oh! And an overdue explanation for the poll to the left. A buddy of mine recently suggested I try my hand at writing, considering, he says, "You read like it's going to take you somewhere, Eagle." (He's not much of a reader.) And so ... the gauntlet has been laid.

Aargh!

So I'm sipping a coffee this morning, looking ahead to this afternoon's mail delivery, when I open my email and Amazon.com is telling me that Harry was only shipped yesterday! Supposedly it will get here by tomorrow, but now I'm wondering if maybe I should have bought it from Powell's or one of the bookstores in town. But no, I should not beat myself up, I will wait, I will be patient and read the copy that, for better or worse, is aligned with my fate.

On a brighter note: is that the Royals in first place?

Where there's a will, there's Sarvas.

T Minus 2

Good things are supposed to come in threes, right? So I´m wondering what can possibly follow on the heels of, first, my Jayhawks stealing the title from Memphis on Clutch Chalmers´s prayer, and second, Harry, which is supposed to arrive at my doorstep just eight brief days later. I have always felt that March, as a month, lasts forever. April, on the other hand, I am always loathe to say goodbye to ... this year especially ...

I am thinking that it would be interesting to "Live Blog" my reading of Harry, to capture the actual, in-the-moment experience, first time through. If any of you would like to take part in this "experiment," I think we could have a really interesting literary dialogue.

I will ask that contributors to Sarvas Park refrain from spoilers, though. I´ll let you know when I´m finished, and then it will be open season in The Park!

T Minus 5

Hi to all those in literay land. This is my first foray into the "Blogosphere." Wild! I´ve always looked to Mark´s blog as a source of inspiration as to how to write about stuff you love. And so, I am going to try doing the same for Mark and his new book, Harry, Revised, and I invite all those who are fans of TEV and who are as excited as I am about reading it and who just in general love books to join me in discussing what must be the most anticipated release of this young year, hands down.

I will try to keep you up-to-date on all the reviews of Harry, as well as interviews, author appearances -- all things Sarvas! Thanks for checking this out.

If I may paraphrase the best movie of the year in talking about what is sure to be the best book of the year: THERE WILL BE SARVAS.