Republic

"What is justice, what is virtue, asked Plato in his Republic. The characters in JB Powell's novel wrestle with the same questions in their quarter of Berkeley: the sculptor Aidan, aka George Bush, evades thousands of dollars in municipal parking tickets but must contend with a felony charge for impersonating a federal official; his estranged lover Annie longs for a "normal" life but struggles with bouts of clairvoyance and an addiction to methamphetamines; meanwhile, Liam spends night shifts on a tug boat dreaming of Casablanca's mythical plane to Lisbon; little Bianca runs away from her foster home and Desmond trips over a murdered donut baker while trying to forget Annie's smile...So, does Cold Water, a killer loan shark, represent the only justice we're likely to find? Or will the Socratic scholar turned would-be poker ace Matthew pull off a miracle? Descend into Powell's modern Piraeus and find out."--BOOK JACKET.