Why Liv?

by Jon Sebastian Shifrin

Overview

As a twenty-something corporate employee with a doctor-in-training girlfriend, Livingstone Modicai Ackerman--Liv, to his friends--personifies success. Yet all is not as it seems. His job is tedious and soul-gutting, his girlfriend is a vacuous, image-conscious snob, and, meanwhile, his pathologically narcissistic parents are constant irritants. Add to this the febrile political climate dominated by a reactionary group, the Patriot Posse, led by a mendacious radio personality with outlandish hair and catchy campaign slogan to "Make America Great Again," is a presidential candidate--and he's winning!

How does one maintain a sense of dignity and worth in such a cynical environment devoid of humanity and hope?

Told with humor, charm, and wit, Why Liv? attempts to explain why modern work is so devoid of purpose and why reactionary politics is so alluring in America. But most of all, it humbly attempts to offer a reason to persevere in these difficult times.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781950282937
Publisher:	Bublish, Inc.
Publication date:	10/29/2019
Pages:	240
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.50(h) x 0.55(d)

Editorial Reviews

Jon Sebastian Shifrin's novel, Why Liv?, centers around a corporate drone and his search for meaning in his life. Liv, as he's called, is a 20-something living in Manhattan. He's bored with his job, annoyed with his apolitical yet beautiful, ambitious girlfriend Gita, and fed up with the current political climate—particularly the Comitans, a political group that resembles Republicans, and presidential candidate Edward Schmidt, a radio personality who mirrors the current president, down to his orange pompadour hair and campaign slogan of making the country great again. Eventually, Liv is driven to quit his job, break up with Gita—and head to Spain to find himself. As the story unfolds, Liv meets the love of his life and discovers a new path.

Shifrin's novel is often a highly amusing ride. His narrator's descriptions of everyday corporate life recall episodes of The Office and the cult hit, Office Space. For example, at one point, supervisor Marcy lectures Liv on his work failures: "You haven't reported your weekly recycling activity for six weeks, nor have you opted in to the office's composting plan. You missed your rotation for turning off the lights at close of business—twice—and I heard you're even printing one-sided documents." Fans of the series and movie, will likely revel in parts of Why Liv?

Blue Ink Review