Big If (Magill’s Literary Annual 1991-2005)
At a glance:
- Author: Mark Costello
- First Published: 2002
- Type of Work: Novel
- Time of Work: The 1990’s
- Setting: Center Effing, New Hampshire, and nearby towns; suburban Maryland; Hinman, Illinois; Iowa; various outposts on the vice president’s campaign trail
- Principal Characters: Vi Asplund, Walter Asplund, Jens Asplund, Petulia Boyle, Gretchen Williams, Tevon Williams, Lloyd Felker, Lydia Felker, Tashmo, Shirl
- Genres: Long fiction
- Subjects: Family or family life, United States or Americans, Parents and children, Twentieth century, Alienation, New Hampshire, Elections, Politicians, Work or workers, Floods, 1990’s, Secret service, Maryland
- Locales: Maryland, Illinois, New Hampshire, Iowa
Raised in a New Hampshire hamlet nestled between Interstate 95 and the Atlantic Ocean, Vi Asplund and her brother Jens grew up quite routinely. Their father, a Republican, atheist, insurance adjuster, crosses out “God” on United States currency and inks “U.S.” into the slogan “In God We Trust.” Vi learns investigative techniques early as she accompanies her father to the disaster sites covered by his insurance company’s policies: a farming accident resulting in a lost foot, a lightning strike that kills a golf professional, a fire that burns down a building and appears to...
[The entire page is 1886 words long]
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