Stewart O'Nan's, "Last Night at the Lobster," tells the story of a wretched man named Manny DeLeon. Manny's current situation isn't pleasing. He gets relegated from his position at the Red Lobster as a general manager to an assistant manager at a nearby Olive Garden because his New Britain branch is being shut down. His problems don't end there. His grandmother who had raised him passes away and the waitress he once fell in love with is leaving after she ended their fleeting affair. At home his troubles worsen, his pregnant girlfriend is soon giving birth to their child. Manny can be described as an optimistic man. Though he faces many challenges in life, he is copes with them and prepares his beloved restaurant for it's final day of service. Many of Manny's staff had been let go of, so he has to comprise and work with what he has so he can close the restaurant he has worked in for years in a respectful manner. Manny's character can be described as determined and vigorous. I think it's safe to call him an everyday hero because despite all his losses he still manages to keep his head up high and go on with life. Something many are incapable of. I think the character of Manny is a hero and someone to look up to for people in the current economic situation. "Last Night at the Lobster," may be a metaphor for the current situation the working class is stuck in now? Or is it a metaphor of life in general? .
From the power outages due to the treacherous weather to the smallest details of the condition of Manny's restaurant, O'Nan doesn't hold back from anything. I think one of the main reasons why I enjoyed this book so much was because of how detailed and everything was. Also, I felt like the small details made the book stronger and it holds the book together. I mean every time I would try to skim through a portion and I would read past these details, I would always have to go back and reread it because I missed the subtext or was very confused as to what was going on.
