A poignant clash of cultures

Drop City," the ninth novel by literary force T. Coraghessan Boyle, is perhaps his most subtle and poignant work to date. At times hilarious, at others incredibly tragic, it is an imaginative study of the counterculture's slow fade to black in the early 1970s. He skillfully melds character study with plot, and the interaction of his flawed characters is breathtaking in its beauty and its surprisingly complex interplay between conflicting loyalties.\nBoyle introduces us to Drop City, a hippie commune that has seen better days. Its owner, Norm Sender, is a firm believer in the Aquarian ideals and leader of the ragtag group of hippies, drifters and runaways who live on his farm. The commune is devoted to the concepts of free love and enlightenment, and the members take it quite seriously -- taking drugs and practicing free love all day long. The rebellious members of Drop City -- Star, Pan, Marco and Reba -- are developed well beyond the stereotypes of the hippie age.\nHowever, Drop City is under pressure from the outside world and ugly incidents create tension within. Racism and suspicion of members' intentions threaten to tear their utopia asunder and criminal acts nearly guarantee it. A 14-year-old girl is raped and the commune's runaway horse causes the county to become involved. The ragtag group then moves north to Alaska to escape the 'plastic society' of the lower 48 states.\nThe caravan begins winding its way up the California coast, holding their bus together by sheer will. After a perilous border crossing into Canada, Drop City is in the clear. Once the hippies reach Alaska, they set out to the wilderness, with visions of an easy life communing with nature alone. However, they encounter young Alaskan homesteaders who are already successfully living off the land. As the summer dwindles away to nothing, the hippies are faced with the growing reality of the harsh Alaskan winter. Tensions mount within the new Drop City, and surprising relationships develop between the Alaskans and the hippies.\nFactions form in Drop City, with many siding up in a deadly conflict between the two main Alaskan characters, Sess Harder and Joe Bosky. What began as a petty fight between the two men escalates into a deadly struggle. Sess, with his cynical view of human nature, has to debate with Marco about the morality of life and death in the bush at the novel's climactic moment.\nThe beauty of "Drop City" lies within the relationships the characters have with each other. What could have easily been a novel about the two factions squaring off against each other develops into deep forming relationships. By the end, the similarities between the hippies and the homesteaders are far more apparent than their ideological differences.\n"Drop City" is neither satire nor nostalgia, but rather a truthful telling of the ideals and personalities that drove the counterculture movement. Unflinching and never sentimental, "Drop City" is a brilliant work of fiction that is a tour de force throughout its 500-plus pages, with a conclusion that is shocking, yet satisfying.\nBoyle's "Drop City" is published by Viking Penguin. It has a list price of $14.00 and is available on www.amazon.com.