Title: Clipperton
Author: Karl Berger
Publisher: BookSide Press
ISBN: 978-1-77883-558-2
Pages: 274
Genre: Historical Fiction
Reviewer: Jason Lulos

Read Book Review

“He learned to appreciate organic patterns so that the architectural communities would resemble living plants that could repair damage and redirect growth.”

This quote from author Karl Berger’s novel Clipperton beautifully encapsulates the arc of this story and the journey of the main character: Frank Herrmann. This novel is a story of three journeys: personal, historical, and physical. These three journeys symbiotically coalesce into a larger narrative about grief and new life. It is poignant but also action-packed. This is a rare combination. It’s nice to read a story with action that also has philosophical and emotional complexity.

Frank Herrmann learns of his father’s death. He has some fond memories, but his father’s Nazi past and somewhat stern parenting loom large over his recollections. The deep dive into his father’s history parallels his own obsessive self-reflections as he strives to reckon with where he came from, who he is now, and who he hopes to become. This novel is poetic and succinct, each philosophical note and historical anecdote contributing to Frank’s journey of self-awareness. While that all sounds very academic, this book is also notably exciting and downright fun to read. It could also be classified as an adventure novel.

Frank Herrmann is a thoughtful, sensitive architectural writer. His ever increasing need to learn his father’s history is a means to understand himself. Racked with self-doubt, especially after the death of his wife, Frank finally faces his lifelong urge to prove he is dependable, even heroic: to himself, everyone in his life, and certainly to his cousin Jim who has lurked in Frank’s mind as the older brother whose macho superiority Frank could never live up to. Jim is involved with Leila, Lucienne’s sister. Frank’s bond with Leila and his angst with Jim heighten the intensity of the story.

When Frank agrees to accompany Jim and Leila to the remote and deserted Clipperton Island to investigate his father’s Nazi legacy, their haunted pasts climatically resurface, turning this introspective story into a harrowing tale of survival. Like Jim, Frank is haunted by history and the quest is to “repair damage and redirect growth.”

Frank’s architectural interests continually resurface. He references Christopher Alexander’s The Timeless Way of Building, a philosophical treatise on architectural theory. As in architecture, Franks studies his past models in order to build something new. In doing so, Frank hopes to rebuild his life. This novel has a bit of everything: historical conspiracy, romance, self-discovery, philosophy, and of course, architecture. This is one of those stories that has a complex plot but it’s written so well that the complexity just adds nuance. If it’s all about learning and building, Karl Berger has written an interesting and gripping story that is a powerful and unforgettable account of a historical tragedy lost to time. A must-read for fans of historical fiction stories of human survival against insurmountable odds.