A road trip that veers off course
Mercedes Helnwein’s debut, The Potential Hazards of Hester Day, is a road trip novel that isn’t quite the whimsical detour it tries to be
By Michele Koury
Published: February 25th, 2008 | 2:04pm
There’s something innately likable about Mercedes Helnwein’s first novel The Potential Hazards of Hester Day and yet there’s also something that keeps it from being the whimsical fairytale that its enigmatic author wants it to be. It might be that Helnwein herself, a young artist known for her gorgeous and disturbing illustrations, seems to be more of a compelling character than those in her underdeveloped, somewhat rushed story of a cynical teen who marries a poetic near-stranger, kidnaps her stoic 10-year-old cousin, and inexplicably embarks on a spur of the moment road trip. Helnwein, clearly full of ideas, seems to be a quintessential arty California girl, and could very well become a Francesca Lia Block if she really tried, but she’s still got a lot of growing to do.
The book is indeed charming. Helnwein writes clever, Diablo Cody–esque dialogue in the scenes between her sarcastic, thrift-store dress–clad, chain-smoking, too-cool-for-modern-America heroine, Hester Day, and Hester’s spontaneously acquired philosopher husband, Fenton. Helnwein tries to establish their relationship as enchantingly dysfunctional, but instead all descriptions of their chemistry remain on the surface and the progression of their friendship feels hurried, just like the entire story.
The general point is that Fenton and Hester were bored pessimists, and the random, bizarre journey served as a way for them to finally come of age and learn to love life. It could be a slightly mystical, endearingly whimsical adventure story, but instead it reads like a first draft of a student’s practice story for a creative writing class. In spite of the witty moments, Helnwein’s reliance on quirk and reluctance to dig deep serve as unfortunate hazards in her first novel.
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ABOUT THE BOOK
The Potential Hazards of Hester Day (Simon & Schuster)
By Mercedes Helnwein
288 pages
List price: $13
Issue #33
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