The Petting Zoo: A Novel

The late author of The Basketball Diaries, Jim Carroll, has left behind a moving and vividly rendered novel. When Carroll, a poet, musician, and diarist, passed away in September 2009, he was putting the finishing touches on a potent work of fiction, The Petting Zoo.

The novel tells the story of Billy Wolfram, an enigmatic thirty-eight-year-old artist who has become a hot star in the late-1980s New York art scene. As the novel opens, Billy, after viewing a show of Velázquez paintings, is so humbled and awed by their spiritual power that he suffers an emotional breakdown and withdraws to his Chelsea loft. In seclusion, Billy searches for the divine spark in his own work and life.

Carroll's novel moves back and forth in time to present emblematic moments from Billy's life, including his Irish Catholic upbringing, his teenage escapades, and his evolution as an artist and meteoric rise to fame. The novel also features sharply etched portraits of the characters who mattered most to Billy, such as his childhood friend Denny MacAbee, now a famous rock musician; his mentor, the unforgettable art dealer Max Bernbaum; and one extraordinary black bird.

Marked by Carroll's sharp wit, hallucinatory imagery, and street-smart style, The Petting Zoo is a frank, haunting examination of one artist's personal and professional struggles. The novel's vividly rendered scenes and characters, combined with Carroll's distinctive voice, make it a compelling and thought-provoking read.

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