The Radicals

The Radicals

Author: Ryan McIlvain
Desc: An intimate suspenseful and provocative portrait of friendship and love at its limits and a timely exploration of class tensions and corporate excess in America   When Eli first meets Sam Westergard he is dazzled by his new friend’s charisma energy and determined passion. Both graduate students in New York City the two young men bond over their idealism their love of poetry and their commitment to socialism both in theory and practice—this last taking the form of an organized protest against Soline a giant energy company that has speculated away the jobs and savings of thousands. As an Occupy-like group begins to coalesce around him Eli realizes that some of his fellow intellectuals are more deeply—and dangerously—devoted to the cause than others. One such true believer is Alex Eli’s ex-girlfriend and eventually Sam’s lover who pushes the group toward a more “active” posture complicating Sam and Eli’s friendship as well as Eli’s relationship with his fiancé Jen a musician who is more and more skeptical of the group’s radicalism. When Sam and Eli begin to pursue the ex-CEO of Soline personally what was once a mere academic debate becomes violently real.   A fiercely intelligent wonderfully human illustration of friendship empathy and suspicion in the midst of political upheaval Ryan McIlvain’s new novel confirms him as one of the most talented and distinctive writers at work today.