The Car Thief

By: Theodore Weesner

Narrated by: Paul Michael Garcia

Described as "one of the best coming-of-age novels of the twentieth century," Theodore Weesner's modern American classic is now on audio!

It's 1959. Sixteen-year-old Alex Housman has just stolen his 14th car and frankly doesn't know why. His divorced, working-class father grinds out the night shift at the local Chevy plant in Detroit and looks forward to the flask in his glove compartment and the open bottles of booze in his Flint, Michigan, home. Broke and fighting to survive, Alex and his father face the realities of estrangement, incarceration, and even violence as their lives unfold toward the climactic episode that a New York Times reviewer called "one of the most profoundly powerful in American fiction."

In this rich, beautifully crafted story, Weesner has written a transcendent piece of literature in deceptively simple language, painting a powerful portrait of a father and a son otherwise invisible among the mundane, everyday details of life in blue-collar America. It is a true and enduring American classic.

©1972 Theodore Weesner (P)2013 Blackstone Audio, Inc.

Young and Unsre

The compassion of the author for his character was heartwarming. Understanding that youth needs/wants guidance as well as companionship and lacking that they run on urges and desires. It would have been nice if the author had dug a bit deeper into the why of some of Alex’s behaviors.

classic

this was a great classic novel. not as much about the cars as I was looking for but I still found myself hooked.

The last publisher review that gets me intrigued.

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

English student assignment on how to write about the malaise that too many directionless youths experience. The "Outsiders" it is not.

Would you ever listen to anything by Theodore Weesner again?

Not likely.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

Well spoken, however, it is hard to polish shale.

Any additional comments?

Gave it several shots while traveling to and from work. Three hours in. Almost fell asleep. Won't finish.