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Dec 18, 2023 By Frank Valish

The Sterns Are Listening is the debut novel by poet Jonathan Wells, and it takes on parallel stories involving one complicated New York family. Benjamin Stern has, in the later stages of his life, entered into business with his younger brother to develop hearing aids for aging punks who spent their best days at venues like CBGBs. Benjamin’s son has, after a few aggressive outbursts, been sent away to be rehabilitated at a wilderness camp. Their stories alternate in chapters and ultimately come together at the end. The back-and-forth structure is an oft-employed conceit, but in this case it works marvelously. Although each chapter tells a different side of the familial tale, they are ultimately intertwined from the start.

The Sterns Are Listening is a portrait of a family trying to keep itself together, both mentally and physically through difficult times, times which they are navigating without rule book or experience. Emotions are raw all around. The story, which is written in vivid prose with wonderfully expressive writing, is not one for hyperbole but instead echos the reality of so many family situations, of people struggling with demons both personal and otherwise, and trying to navigate as best they can circumstances that are anything but simple.

The fact that the book is set in New York City, with the specter of CBGBs and ‘70s punk hanging overhead lends another layer of realness to the proceedings. Ultimately, Wells’ novel provides the cathartic ending one might hope for, but perhaps not in the manner one might expect. Ultimately, The Sterns Are Listening is a triumph. (www.zebooks.com)

Author rating: 8/10