Why on earth am I doing what I do? What do I forgo by taking the path well-trodden as opposed the path that my heart truly desires? This may not be what most see when they read Grossman's Codex, but that was the one thing that hit home for me. Seeing the main character lose himself in yearning for fulfillment the one instant he paused from his busy life caused me to force myself to pause....
In Codex, Grossman walks the reader through a month in a life of a star investment banker, Edward Wozny, who is facing a minor existential crisis while on vacation before taking another high powered position in London. Edward finds himself questioning what the point of his life has been as he embarks on a quest to locate a book that could shed doubt on an obscenely wealthy Duke's lineage. He does so at the request of the Duchess, Blanche, who he manages to romanticize and at whose beckon and call he throws himself regardless of the consequences to himself, or to her. On this quest, he meets Margaret, a Columbia graduate student who is very knowledgeable about all things medieval literature and whose charm is her lack of charm and common graces, and her quiet beauty.
Grossman narrates the story with such ease that I as the reader felt like an insider in the world of medieval literature and larger than life role playing video games. These very different genres are married together quite harmoniously in this pager turner. This a great book for anyone who has ever wondered why they wake up every morning and do as they ought to, and who has ever wondered what it would be like to toss it all to the wind and for a moment go after that one thing that your heart wants the most. This aspect, which is a major appeal of the book, is also one of its major frustrations: As Edward loses himself in finding and delivering the codex, his questionable decisions and eagerness to trust belie his four years as an investment banker.
Maybe all I need to do is find where the intersection of my hearts desire and human expectation lies.
SCORE: 4 pearls
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