Of course, after reading Tony Tulathimutte’s new novel Rejection, I had to read his first book Private Citizens. I’m only 1/3 in but I can already say that it’s eminently worth reading. It’s not as narratively adventurous because it was his first novel, and writers grow. But that makes it easier to read.
Private Citizens points to the huge gaping hole in the middle of the neoliberal worldview. It’s the conflict between the productivity-maximizing entrepreneurial self and the indulgent, ego-flattering desiring self. The persona that gets up at 5 am to do gratitude journaling and prepare for a productive day is not the same one that is dedicated to humoring one’s every identitarian whim. How can you be hard enough to impose yourself on life while simultaneously so soft as to constantly flow and mutate?
The characters of Private Citizens are trying to bridge this gap and mostly failing. Tulathimutte is great at diagnosing the problem but he’ll never provide a solution. He’s trapped by his political beliefs and will circle around the issue endlessly without noticing the obvious solution. He’s still a great writer, though. These are excellent novels that I’m enjoying greatly.
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