Don't let Ethan Hawke's star status deter you from reading a great book.  Yes, I'm gushing all over this one.

For some reason I didn't make it all the way through his first book, The Hottest State, but I'll be giving it a re-read after reading Ash Wednesday.

Ash Wednesday is the story of a relationship gone nuts when the girl finds out she's pregnant.

The characters remind me A LOT of Fuckhead and his girlfriend in Jesus' Son by Denis Johnson.  There's a clueless vulnerability to them as they use their limited strengths to become better people, or at least think they become better people.

Ash Wednesday is written like a film.  I'm sure that influence was drawn from Ethan tackling the director's chair in his film Chelsea Walls.

After 20 pages I completely forgot it was an Ethan Hawke book and I was totally sucked into this wonderful story.

Ethan Hawke is on his way to becoming a great American writer.

Ash Wednesday is scheduled to be released on July 23, 2002.

Also recommended:

Roman
by Roman Polanski

Great insider information regarding Hollywood players of the 80's as well as inspirational words regarding the art of filmmaking.