Jonathan Lethem. Stated first edition, first printing. New York: Doubleday, 2003. Both unclipped dust jacket and hardcover are in Very Good+ condition. No writing or markings found in this book, 511 pp.
A sprawling, soulful, and often devastating coming-of-age novel, The Fortress of Solitude follows two boys—Dylan Ebdus and Mingus Rude—growing up in 1970s Brooklyn, bound by music, comic books, race, and the invisible power of friendship. Lethem blends sharp social realism with a touch of magical realism (including a mysterious ring that grants flight), crafting a complex narrative about adolescence, gentrification, race relations, and the painful transformation from youth to adulthood.
Lethem’s own background in Brooklyn informs every street corner of the novel, and his ability to pivot between gritty reality and surrealism places him among the most dynamic American literary voices of the early 21st century. The Fortress of Solitude is widely regarded as his magnum opus, a novel that expanded his cult following into broader critical acclaim.
