William Morrow Books
288 Pages
Sometimes when I’m at the Lockport Public Library, I bypass the new release shelves and dive into the stacks. Not every review I write has to be for a new book. Sometimes there are treasures hidden away in the “old” books. They say you should never judge a book by its cover, but I wander the aisles, randomly grabbing books that look interesting. That’s how I found The Leisure Seeker by Michael Zadoorian.
The cover shows a blurry RV as it races through the lonely roads of the American Southwest. The possibility of a cool road trip book intrigued me. I have a fascination with Route 66, and I figured this could be one of those books that fell into my reading wheelhouse. The inside summary described a road trip along the old route with an old married couple. One was sick and the other had dementia. Would they be able to take one last road trip despite the fervent protestations of their family members?
Part of the intrigue for me before starting this book stemmed from the idea that my wife and I want to travel after we retire. We’re closing in on that time, so I thought this would be a funny book to retell to my wife as we think about the places we want to go. What I got when I read this book was a funny, poignant, and sad book that perfectly captured the human spirit. I love books with rich characters that feel like they could walk off the page and fit into everyday society.I had no idea that this book had been written into a movie as well until I started this review. I will have to watch it, too.
Ella and John Robina are the main characters in the book. In their eighties, most of their lives are behind them. Ella has multiple medical issues, and she no longer wants to put herself through treatments that will ultimately only prolong the inevitable. As for John, he is sinking deeper and deeper into the fugue of his mind. While he still has some faculties and she can still function through the pain, Ella makes the executive decision to take one last road trip against the wishes of their children and their doctors. They’re going to Disneyland in California via the old Route 66.
John seems to come back to life when he’s behind the wheel of the RV. Old memories of former road trips keep him focused with a renewed energy. Ella hides the extent of her illness from her husband, knowing that when he relapses, she’ll have to explain herself over and over again. Their travels are a splendid mix of wonder and angst. Not every mile of this trip is sunshine and butterflies. The couple find themselves in various tenuous situations, much like our own road trip, when something inevitably goes awry.
One thing I got out of this book was a correlation between the old Route 66 and John and Ella. Once, the old road was fresh, new, and full of potential. As time marched on, the Mother Road slowly became obsolete with new, faster roadways being constructed in its place. While parts of the road still remain, it’s mostly memories of fonder days that are left. That is similar to the lives of John and Ella. Once upon a time, they were young and full of potential. As they aged, they could do less and less. Their children and grandchildren have moved on with the world’s new technologies. More and more, all John and Ella have left are the memories, and even then, John’s are fading faster. This parallel between the history of the road and the history of the characters was one of my favorite parts of this wonderful novel.
Michael Zadoorian weaves a wonderful tale. He grasps the mentality of his characters with ease. These characters are lovable and real. They reminded me of some grandparents I know. I could picture John and Ella as they traveled across the country. The author’s prose is extremely readable. You will find yourselves quickly turning the pages all the way to the end, whereupon you’ll wish there were more pages to share with John and Ella. You want to know more. For me, that makes this a great book. It is in the top ten of the books I’ve read in 2024. You should be warned, however, that this book is not all rosy. This is real life -- the good, the bad, the ugly.
I really enjoyed The Leisure Seeker by Michael Zadoorian. It was a quick, weekend read. If you want a book that will entertain you for a quick couple of days, this is the book for you. Zadoorian has three other books. I will have to find them and give them a chance to entertain me as much as this one did.
Craig Bacon will someday travel across the country with his lovely bride. Maybe he’ll even write about it.