Publication Date May 25, 2021
David Swinson’s City On The Edge is described as a “transformative crime story,” set in Beirut in the 1970s. Told from the perspective of 13-year-old Graham, who lives with his State Department father, younger brother, and the mother who is apparently drunk most of the time and fights with David’s father constantly, it takes place over the course of a year. The family lives in a large apartment building with Micheline, their live-in “housekeeper, cook, nanny, sometimes friend.” Graham makes two good friends and, together, they explore and build a “fort” and generally act like early teen-aged boys, in search for adventure.
Graham isn’t really sure what his father does for a living, although he has some suspicions that Dad is more than an administrative worker (particularly when he finds the gun his father carries in his briefcase). One day, Graham and his friends are in the fort when a murder is committed RIGHT THERE in front of the shocked Graham, his friends having left for home already. The story of Graham’s interaction with the murder investigation, his run-in with a local teenage bad guy, his mixed feelings as he begins to discover how his body responds to seeing a woman undressing — all of it is incredibly well written and really held my interest.
Swinson himself is the son of a foreign service officer, and lived in various places around the world growing up (including Beirut), so his depiction of the picturesque seaside city as it begins its sad slide from being the “Paris of the Mideast” to being a violence-ridden, unsafe site of terror attacks and espionage. The impact of foreign interference in the various battles going on throughout the region is apparent, revealed gradually as the story unfolds, Graham’s parents’ marriage disintegrates, and the entire family has to leave Lebanon…except for his father, who has unfinished business there. It’s not exactly a page-turner, although I was motivated to keep reading to find out what happened to Graham and his friends and family.
The author really knows the City of Beirut and what it is like to be the son of a “foreign service officer” growing up in various newsworthy cities (Beirut, Mexico City, Saigon). I will happily read Mr. Swinson’s next book, and perhaps may try his series about a D.C.-based private investigator. Thanks to Mulholland Books and NetGalley for a copy of City On The Edge in exchange for this honest review. Four stars.