SPRINGTIME IN LAWRENCE PARK

In this long-winded and bizarre novel, Robert Petkoff's performance engages at once, continually offering surprises as voices change and personalities exert themselves. Toronto's upscale Lawrence Park is home to Marie Dorée Barnacle and her seriously dysfunctional family. After the death of her parents' first daughter, Marie is treated like an exotic flower, and her life is not her own until she finally escapes to college. Petkoff takes listeners through Marie's life with--and away from--her possessive family. As she fails at career after career and relationship after relationship, the Barnacles step in to rescue her. Arnold Logan's literary scalpel slices deep into the lives of nouveau-riche Torontonians, and Petkoff's subtle delivery captures all the dark, funny, and disturbing elements. S.J.H. © AudioFile 2020, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPTEMBER 2020]