THE CRAZY WISDOM

MEMOIR OF A FRIENDSHIP

by Christopher Shaw ‧ RELEASE DATE: Aug. 27, 2021

A memoir celebrates a difficult but deep friendship in the Adirondacks.

Not long after settling into a corner of the Adirondacks, that huge wilderness area in upstate New York (Shaw was born and raised in Schenectady, just south of there), the author met Jon Cody. This man would change Shaw’s life in ways both obvious and subtle. Cody was loud, fearless, gregarious, generous—he would literally give you the shirt off his back if you admired it—and always alive with ideas. If anyone was “larger than life,” it was Cody. He was also one-armed, dyslexic, and a prodigious consumer (and dealer) of weed—big blunts all day long—and often other illegal substances. And seldom would he refuse a drink. The dealing supported him, but he was also a very talented and skillful worker in leather. Shaw, meanwhile, was seriously adrift, with vague ideas of becoming a writer. If he just kept imagining himself one (old story, that), someday, he trusted, the Writing Fairy would appear and anoint him as such. Meanwhile, he drifted from job to job (ski lift operator, hunting guide). Cody lived and held court in the Wigwam, a remnant of a building on an abandoned estate, where everyone was welcome: hunters, fishermen, drug enthusiasts, assorted lowlifes, and, of course, the author. Cody died alone there in 2015 after living his life on his own terms, a much-abused cliché but very true in his case. Shaw did what he could to create a proper memorial. The author, by the way, finally did become an accomplished writer and teacher. One imagines dyslexic Cody, whom Shaw used to read to (Jack London was a favorite), being proud, if somewhat bemused.

It’s no surprise that Shaw is a gifted writer—graceful, sensitive, and learned. This being the account of a male friendship, it is important to note that the relationship between the author and Cody was a bromance, not an affair reminiscent of Brokeback Mountain. Shaw is clear on that, but a real love did exist between these two men, and he deftly examines it with regard to Jung and other sources. This memoir is also a vibrant love letter to the Adirondacks, a hinterland of rough weather and encompassing forests and streams that breeds characters to rival (but not match) Cody. This is a book that invites readers to sink into it, to wish they were living in that wild, enticing place; casting a line in those trout streams; or just getting plastered in the bars (so many bars) while singing and dancing exuberantly and having a good friend like Cody—none too sober either. This pal would eventually drag them home or throw a blanket over them on his couch. Finally, the work is a stirring paean to friendship and need. What is this “Crazy Wisdom” the memoir’s title trumpets? readers may ask. Perhaps it refers to Cody’s wisdom of fearlessly owning his life, which gave Shaw the courage to finally take charge of his own destiny. People need heroes to make their ways in this world, even if those heroes are as starkly unlikely as Cody.

A wonderfully written and inspiring exploration of a beautiful friendship.

Pub Date: Aug. 27, 2021

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: 218

Publisher: Outskirts Press

Review Posted Online: Oct. 21, 2021

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Dec. 15, 2021

Review Program: Kirkus Indie

Categories:

BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR | FAMILY & RELATIONSHIPS | GENERAL BIOGRAPHY & MEMOIR