on the book-end of things

i just finished the sisters brothers, a novella by a talented young writer, patrick dewitt. it is a pseudo westerner set in the gold rush era california. the brothers, charilie sisters and eli sisters are hit men working for a powerful figure known only as the commodore. their assignment? to rid of a hermann kermit warm. for what they do not know. nor care.

the story is narrated by eli sisters, the younger of the two. as they pursue their marked man, eli becomes contemplative, wondering about the life he is leading, and the price he has paid to be close to his brother charlie, whom he's loved and looked up to since he was a child.

i say the book is pseudo western since there is nothing hard core as in a john wayne or a clint eastwood. on the surface it is eli's introspective examination, but just underneath it we sense author's satire about a society led by greed. the language is light and humorous, making it an easy read for someone like me who has a limited vocabulary.

i'd give the book 4 out of 5 stars. there are a few details in the book that are far fetched and unrealistic. besides that it makes a perfect summer read. get it before someone else grabs it from the shelf of your local library.