Doubting Thomas

I finished reading Odd Thomas over the weekend. It's taken me far too long to start reading Dean Koontz. I'll definitely be back for more.

Being a mystery story, a spoiler-free review would be unintelligible. Instead I'll comment on Koontz's stated intent to chronicle the title character's journey toward perfect humility in light of the first novel's action and themes.

Humility is nothing more or less than self-honesty. It fulfills the ancient exhortation to "know thyself". Humble people understand their own strengths and weaknesses. Bearing all people's inherent worth in mind, they don't compare their gifts, faults, or accomplishments to others'.

How well does Odd meet these conditions? One character trait that the novel really drives home is the protagonist's simplicity. He lives above a nice old lady's garage with interior design by the Salvation Army. Eschewing automobile ownership, he walks to work and borrows friends' cars for trips farther afield. Having worked as a short-order cook since high school, he dreams of a future in tire or shoe sales but is content to nurse his plans slowly.

Such a frugal, unassuming life could result from humility. It could also signify a lack of magnanimity. The novel repeatedly speculates that its main character may be neurotic or even psychotic. His modesty could be the product of a traumatic, imagination-killing childhood.

The best evidence that Odd practices genuine humility is the insight Koontz gives us into his interior life, especially when he deals with others. The author conjures a motley cast of flawed characters to serve as foils. There's the rootless materialistic father, the spoiled and arrogant gold-digger, the irredeemable sociopath. Even when he encounters truly reprehensible people, Odd never uses his own conduct as a standard by which to judge them.

There are a few signs of residual pride operating within Odd's psyche. His willingness to endanger himself for what he sees as the cosmic mandate of his psychic gift clearly exceeds altruism. Garden variety rashness may explain it, but a subtle form of pride underlies his penchant for taking matters into his own hands because the cops are too slow/wouldn't understand/might accuse him. These rationalizations for bypassing the proper channels of justice boil down to the fact that Odd knows he's gifted and the police aren't.

Still, Koontz wants to portray a character on his way to perfect humility. That moral arc would be redundant if Odd started out perfectly humble. I'm interested to see where the road leads.