Jacket Weather

Jacket Weather by Mike DeCapite (2021) Jacket Weather, a novel, is by Mike DeCapite, about a guy named Michael who you might assume is the author—if it was called “a memoir”—you certainly would—and be just as right, and just as wrong. Of course, the distinction between “fiction” and “non-fiction” is unnecessary—and especially unnecessary for a book like this, which is a poetic, highly charged, yet relaxed depiction of a relationship (discovery, anxiety, maturity, love) that we have to believe is real. You get to know the narrator, Michael, and a woman, June, who he has reconnected with, and then you follow their relationship while getting to know the geography, the times, and the quirky characters around them. So much did I believe it all, if I was to read, now, that it was all made up, I wouldn’t believe that it was all made up. Part of why it’s so convincing is that the structure feels so organic—in fact, I didn’t detect a structure at all, at first. Every once in a while you’ll come to a break—feeling like some time has passed. What I didn’t realize until later is that these breaks denote seasonal change—moving forward toward winter, and starting around… I just now got this… June. But time otherwise jumps around over any number of the years of this relationship. Within this structure, then, the book is made up of smaller segments—anywhere from a few words to a few pages—so it always feels like you’re moving, seeing things, hearing things—either from the characters or on your own. New York City is the undeniable setting—as important to the book as anything. Based on cultural references, you get a rough idea of the years covered—and I was able to feel like I was close in age to Michael and June. Because I also lived in NYC, moved away, and moved back, I felt a particular closeness to the details—but I think anyone who observes the world around them will see themselves in this setting. And anyone who has a heart will see themselves in this story.