Ridley's Observances And Insights

Bruce Von Stiers

David Duchovny has worn many hats over the years. He has starred in successful television shows such as X-Files, Calfornication and Aquarius. Duchovny has also been a director and producer. He has also written episodes of some of the shows that he starred in.

Adding to his long list of accomplishments, Duchovny has become a well-established author. He has had success with novels such as Miss Subways, Bucky F*cking Dent and Truly Like Lightning.

This year finds Duchovny having written a whole new book. This one is a novella whose title is The Reservoir. It was published by Akashic Books.

His name is Ridley. He is a slightly older guy who has a grown daughter and grandchildren. He lives in an apartment overlooking Central Park in New York. Due to the Pandemic, Ridley has pretty much isolated himself to his apartment. That is the foundation of a story that is at times soul searching, other times neurotic and a few additional things thrown in.

Ridley is dealing with isolation, loneliness and an apparent disconnection with his daughter and her family. She would like to see him, but is afraid that she, or the kids, might kill him. That is, they might have the virus and give it to him. So, they keep apart.

Then there is Ridley's fascination with what is happening late at night in the city. He sets up his phone camera to capture the nightscape. That leads him to discover someone across the park. That person could possibly be in trouble. This might make you think of Jimmy Stewart in the film Rear Window. In fact, Ridley compares his situation with the film's.

In amongst all of Ridley's random thoughts are his insights on the important things in life. He reminisces about his failures in life and his successes. Besides the strained relationship with his daughter, Ridley laments on his divorce and the early retirement from a lucrative career.

There are a couple of obscure events during the course of the book that seem unrelated. But by the end of the book, the reader will be clued in on what really happened.

The theme of the book is basically about loneliness and isolation. The Pandemic held the foundation for the story. But had Ridley already shut himself off from the rest of the world before the virus even took hold? I got the sense that, to some degree, he probably had walled himself off from society and people around him earlier.

The Reservoir was well written. The story flowed evenly, with each reflection or observation moving things forward. Besides being a great actor, Duchovny has proven himself to be a great storyteller.

The Reservoir was released several weeks ago. You can find it on amazon or at other major book retailers.

To learn more about the book, and to check out other titles from Akashic Books, visit their website at www.akashicbooks.com

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© 2022 Bruce E Von Stiers