- “Krieger
- evokes
- the
- dreary
- darkness
- of
- the
- Uppsala
- winter
- and
- the
- paranoia
- and
- entitlement
- of
- the
- young
- Americans
- there.
- .
- .
- .
- Krieger
- touches
- on
- the
- mix
- of
- noble
- and
- self-interested
- impulses
- that
- can
- propel
- activism.”—New
- York
- Times
- Book
- Review“Exiles
- is
- filled
- with
- suspense.
- .
- .
- .
- It's
- a
- fascinating
- look
- at
- a
- place
- during
- a
- particular
- time,
- but
- the
- intrigue
- transcends
- the
- locale.
- The
- ending
- is
- riveting
- and
- insidious.
- Which
- I
- mean
- as
- a
- compliment.”—Ann
- Beattie“Elliot
- Krieger
- has
- created
- an
- original
- and
- wonderfully
- fallible
- hero
- in
- Lenny
- Spiegel,
- an
- American
- college
- student
- who
- finds
- himself
- in
- Sweden
- among
- Viet
- Nam
- war
- draft
- resisters.
- Passionate
- and
- complex,
- Exiles
- is
- a
- story
- about
- the
- confusion
- and
- quest
- for
- identity—personal,
- political,
- and
- moral.”—Hester
- Kaplan,
- the
- author
- of
- Kinship
- Theory
- and
- The
- Edge
- of
- MarriageSweden
- has
- granted
- asylum
- to
- American
- protesters
- against
- the
- Vietnam
- War.
- Some
- are
- draft
- resisters;
- some
- are
- wanted
- by
- the
- FBI
- for
- acts
- of
- violence;
- some
- are
- AWOL
- soldiers;
- and
- some
- are
- actually
- working
- for
- the
- CIA—or
- so
- everyone
- suspects.
- They
- are
- eking
- out
- their
- lives
- in
- Uppsala
- on
- a
- meager
- dole.
- Each
- thinks
- he
- would
- be
- a
- better
- group
- spokesperson
- than
- Aronson,
- who
- is
- the
- current
- leader
- of
- the
- Americans
- in
- exile
- and
- a
- wanted
- man
- in
- the
- United
- States.
- Into
- this
- maelstrom
- of
- conflicting
- egos
- comes
- an
- innocent,
- Lenny
- Spiegel,
- who
- has
- volunteered
- to
- travel
- to
- Sweden
- to
- help.
- He
- physically
- resembles
- Aronson,
- who
- "borrows"
- his
- passport.
- Until
- it
- is
- returned,
- Lenny
- is
- stuck
- in
- Uppsala
- where
- many
- believe
- he
- is
- Aronson.
- And
- Lenny
- learns
- that
- no
- good
- deed
- goes
- unpunished.Elliot
- Krieger
- won
- an
- O.
- Henry
- Award
- for
- his
- first
- published
- short
- story,
- “Cantor
- Pepper,”
- and
- he
- is
- the
- author
- of
- a
- book
- on
- Shakespeare’s
- comedies.
- He
- has
- served
- as
- a
- reporter
- and
- editor
- at
- the
- Providence
- Journal
- and
- lives
- near
- Providence,
- Rhode
- Island.
- Exiles
- is
- his
- first novel.
pro-mbooks3 : libris
