I guess Count the Ways could be classified as Women's Fiction, but I really enjoy family drama for stories. I had seen quite a few raves for How the LI guess Count the Ways could be classified as Women's Fiction, but I really enjoy family drama for stories. I had seen quite a few raves for How the Light Gets In, a follow up to this one, and so I decided to give this a try.
I really enjoyed the story and how realistic things can happen to a family and how people deal with them, and how Joyce Maynard constructed the novel and how things were playing out were really working for me. For over half the novel I was quite sure that I would be giving this one four stars. Now that I am finished it I would throw it across the room if it wasn't on my beloved Kindle.
Oh, I've got things to say. I'm going to have to enclose a few of the things I had big problems with as they will be major spoilers.
Firstly though, let me address the writing. Perhaps it wasn't as bad through the first half, or at least I didn't notice, but the writing became painfully repetitive for the rest of it. Like really, really bad. She would mention the same occurrence or the same observance over and over and over and over and over again. And in a manner as if her reader were a child with the short term memory of a gnat. Also for the most part, the overall writing had way too much telling and not enough showing. Which I don't like. But, given the story developments below, I'm grateful to be spared the immersion.
Now for what bothered me about the story:
(view spoiler)[There was no way I could buy into Elijah reaching out to his father's ex-wife (Eleanor, who at this point was ostracized by the family), and they have just a lovely relationship. (hide spoiler)]
(view spoiler)[It's bad enough that Eleanor chose to stay mum about what had happened between Coco and Cam, I mean for someone whose children meant the world to her, to accept losing them just so she can protect their feelings about Cam? Give me a break. I confess that I am not a very forgiving person. But I can't imaging anyone falling on a sword like that. And come on. Who among us wouldn't feel the slightest bit of satisfaction of her ex-husband's wife cheating on him the way he cheated on her? So, bad enough for that. Even worse was when she chose to tell her 28 year-old daughter (Ursula, who, by the way, has just ended her silence by reaching out to Eleanor by telling her she can come and stay so she can "help with meals and diapers", oh boy!) the truth about Coco and Cam, and she becomes furious, doesn't believe her, and subsequently doesn't speak to her for years. And this was the NICE daughter, who just wanted everyone to be happy. (hide spoiler)]
(view spoiler)[And great touch having the character who was the kindest to Eleanor, hook up with Coco. Come on. (hide spoiler)]
Such stupid character developments, and it's a wonder I finished the book. But I had to see how it wrapped up. I wish I didn't.
Suffice it to say I won't be reading the follow up. Ridiculous....more
Stoner keeps popping up all over the place as a lot of readers' favourites. I've found myself in a bit of a reading slump, and so, after previous failStoner keeps popping up all over the place as a lot of readers' favourites. I've found myself in a bit of a reading slump, and so, after previous failed attempts (only a page or two admittedly), I decided to see for myself what the fuss was about. The main driver for me was that it was short and fairly cheap.
Well, indeed it's a very well written book. As the book is explained by pretty much everyone, it's simply the quiet story of the titular character whose life spans college years from 1914 to his career as a professor. Told like that it sounds rather dull, but you could say the same thing about Remains of the Day, another quiet novel about a proud butler during WWII.
For about the first third or so of the book, I must say that it was inexplicably engaging. But this feeling faded for me as Stoner's life played out.
Back to Remains of the Day for a minute: similarly, I was highly engaged in this novel that on the surface seems a dull story. But it was the subtle after effects that really took hold of me and I could not get that novel out of my mind. I still think about it. It was a brilliant five stars.
Stoner, on the other hand, really brought me down. This is not a happy story, nor is it a satisfying read, in my humble opinion. In fact, I have felt a dark cloud over my head since reading it yesterday (or perhaps this is simply due to Donald Fucking Trump). Whatever, I am going to be an outlier here and say that I wish I had found something else to read at this time.
Good writing, and this really should have been up my alley, but it wasn't.
I'm feeling two stars, but the writing did shine at times. So I'm bumping to three. ...more
My wife had read this a few weeks ago and she thought that I would also like it. She knows I enjoy character driven stories. Our tastes don't always alMy wife had read this a few weeks ago and she thought that I would also like it. She knows I enjoy character driven stories. Our tastes don't always align, but more often than not we enjoy the same books. Plus, this one was showing up on so many Best of 2024 lists that I couldn't ignore it.
Well, she was pretty right about this one. The story follows Phoebe, who, after dealing with being recently divorced, and more recently discovering her cat had died, checks into a seaside inn for one night where she plans to kill herself. Her arrival coincides with the arrival of a large wedding party, who have filled the rest of the inn. And the story takes off from there.
It really is a nice story with some laughs and some poignant moments, and I'm glad I read it. Will it be one of my top reads of the year? No. But I liked it enough to give it four stars. ...more
I was enjoying this somewhat for the first 30% or so, but unfortunately halfway through I was getting bored of the story. After reading some DNF at 55%
I was enjoying this somewhat for the first 30% or so, but unfortunately halfway through I was getting bored of the story. After reading some reviews that said the rest of the novel didn't change much from this point, I decided I was out.
I succumbed to the hype and lost $12. What got me were the comparisons to Sally Rooney's Normal People, which I enjoyed a lot, but unlike thaDNF at 43%
I succumbed to the hype and lost $12. What got me were the comparisons to Sally Rooney's Normal People, which I enjoyed a lot, but unlike that novel I just can't buy into any of these relationships and the characters. And I'm bored to tears. ...more
It's a bit surprising to me that I've let so much time go by before reading Liane Moriarty again.
Like a lot of people, my first read by her was the maIt's a bit surprising to me that I've let so much time go by before reading Liane Moriarty again.
Like a lot of people, my first read by her was the massively popular Big Little Lives, which I devoured. I then quickly went to The Husband's Secret, which I also devoured, both novels solid five star reads for me. After that, her other works didn't appeal to me, admittedly because I succumbed to mediocre reviews. Up until Nine Perfect Strangers, which unfortunately fell flat for me. And thus, Ms Moriarty fell off my radar for the time being.
Until this one. I couldn't ignore reviews that touted this one as her best since Big Little Lies, and I am very happy to say that those reviewers were right. Moriarty's story takes an enticing premise: aboard a crowded airline flight, an elderly woman stands up and proceeds to tell every person on board how they are going to die, and at what age. This is all you need to know going in. Obviously, she revolves this story around several key passengers, so there are a lot of characters to have in mind. Not only them of course, but also the supporting players in their lives. This could have been a confusing mess in the hands of an amateur, but Moriarty weaves this story (these stories) like the seasoned pro she is, and for the most part it is easy enough to digest.
It's not a short read, 500 pages, and while I would have liked it a little trimmer, I was highly engaged throughout the whole thing. I liked it a lot, and really liked how she landed the ending (Dad joke intended).
I'm pleased to give this five stars, and it's put her back on my radar. Perhaps I'll read What Alice Forgot one of these days.
I really love Emily St John Mandel's writing. My favourites of hers has been The Glass Hotel and Sea of Tranquility, both of which had been in my top I really love Emily St John Mandel's writing. My favourites of hers has been The Glass Hotel and Sea of Tranquility, both of which had been in my top five reads the years I read them. Station Eleven I enjoyed well enough to rate four stars.
Unfortunately this one, her debut, Last Night in Montreal, left me cold. Which is too bad, because I was loving it while reading most of it. Her writing is exemplary: just enough lyrical prose style to make you marvel, but not too much that it gets in the way of an absorbing read. But as far as the resolution of the story goes, it was very unsatisfying for me, and I was left feeling that although the writing was great, and the story was great, unfortunately the sum of its parts left me feeling depressed and left adrift.
You can't win 'em all, and it obviously worked for a lot of other readers, but I admire this lady's recent works so much I am not the least deterred to read The Lola Quartet, because I need to read everything by her.
Ultimately a miss for me, but it was great for a lot of it....more
I've got a passing knowledge of Russian history, but as far as all the players of a hundred years ago, I could ceYet another fine read by John Boyne.
I've got a passing knowledge of Russian history, but as far as all the players of a hundred years ago, I could certainly be better versed. Tsar Nicholas II, Anastasia, Rasputin, all of these names I know of, but I have never taken the time to read up on history and how things played out when the Bolsheviks revolted. I had vowed to read everything by John Boyne a while back as he is one of my favourite authors (if not my favourite, now), and this one was next on my list.
Certainly, Boyne has fictionalized some of the unknowns in this historical tale, but it was great to learn the gist of what went down all those years ago, with a cast of nicely developed characters. And, as I said, a lot of the knowns were unknown to me, so this whole story was fresh! (Embarrassingly fresh...I got undeservedly annoyed with my wife the other night for "spoiling" the ending for me, which should have been common knowledge. Embarrassing, yes.)
I will say that the story did take a while to get interesting to me, but once it did, I could barely put the book down.
Even though I wouldn't rate it as highly as others I have read by him, I still can't give this any less than five stars for how deeply engaged I was for the final third of the novel. Even though it was "spoiled" haha....more
DNF at 28% It's been a long time since I've read Wally Lamb, over 20 years, and recently I wondered why he had dropped off my radar for so long. I loveDNF at 28% It's been a long time since I've read Wally Lamb, over 20 years, and recently I wondered why he had dropped off my radar for so long. I loved I Know this Much is True so much that I vowed I would read a telephone book if he wrote it.
So I decided to rectify this. So many over-hyped books come out these days and they are mostly met with disappointment from yours truly. Best to dig back to the tried and true and read authors I know are great.
Well, he is a great writer, there is no doubt of that, and I was enjoying this one quite a bit. But it began to weigh on me. I read for escapism. Good or bad, whatever is going on in my life, I do need to check out of reality and immerse myself into an imagined one. But these days, emotional trauma is not something I want to escape to, especially for the two or three weeks it will take me to read this big novel. I knew what I was getting into with this novel, and I didn't think it would bother me as much as it did, but it did. And, I've read a couple of very helpful reviews saying that the story meanders a lot in the second half with backstory that few people cared about, and I am already hitting the wall with the meandering even a quarter of the way in.
No regrets, moving on. Just not the right book for me now....more
One Day is one of my favourite novels, so any time David Nicholls releases something, I'm going to snatch it up right away.
You Are Here follows MarnieOne Day is one of my favourite novels, so any time David Nicholls releases something, I'm going to snatch it up right away.
You Are Here follows Marnie and Michael, two 40s-ish people coping with recent divorces, who are part of a group of walkers, the goal being a 10 day trek coast to coast across northern England. There are five people to start, the other three bail early on, leaving Marnie and Michael to complete the walk on their own together (if that's a proper way to put it).
As are all of Nicholls' novels, this is a relationship novels (I refuse to use Romance to describe them), and the reason I love them so much is that he does relationships so well, with thoughtful passages and dry wit. I find these types of stories every bit as engaging as suspense novels as I'm turning the pages so fast anxious to see how they will turn out. Interpersonal dynamics are a can't miss for me especially when they're as well done as Nicholls does and I root for his characters.
Having said that, One Day is still my favourite of his, followed closely by Us. I'd put We Are Here as equally enjoyable as Sweet Sorrow, in that with Sweet Sorrow I was met with a good relationship story but had to endure the Shakespearian play aspect of it, and similarly with We Are Here I was met with a good relationship story but had to endure the hiking details that frankly I got bored with from time to time.
Upon starting this review I was set on giving this 4.5 stars, rounding down just because of that, but Marnie and Michael held my interest very well, and I chuckled at a few of his clever analogies.
I really, really like David Nicholls, and I'm loathe to give this lower than five stars, so there it is. Not "amazing", but really nice to be into for a few days, and really, isn't that the best thing a book can give you?...more
I like this idea well enough: I like the story and I like learning things about the Civil War I neverDNF at 26% only because of the size of the thing.
I like this idea well enough: I like the story and I like learning things about the Civil War I never knew about before. But I'm afraid I don't like the narrative that much. I'm finding a lot of the story parts have an episodic feel to them and frankly I don't feel all that engaged with the characters. I could have stuck it out for another 200 pages but 600? And just Book 1 of a trilogy? Nope. Just not feeling the passion for it, and just too many other books I want to read. It's not bad at all. Just not for me now. ...more
Why has it taken me so long to read John Irving again? Good question. I've always been a saver. Back when I worked for Nortel I had survived 13 layoffsWhy has it taken me so long to read John Irving again? Good question. I've always been a saver. Back when I worked for Nortel I had survived 13 layoffs over 20 years and that instilled in me a philosophy of always staying well above water financially. I saved a lot of money just in case I would be hit next. Throughout my career I hoarded time-in-lieu overtime and allowed the maximum of carry-over vacation time just to have that extra time in my back pocket, just in case. This behavior allowed a fairly stress-free life.
This behavior also translated to my reading life. Up until now I hated to binge out on favorite authors because I never wanted to get to the point where I would be stuck without them as an option, having read everything by them. But I'm rethinking that mindset: a couple of weeks ago I was in a car accident. I wasn't injured other than the jolt of the airbag reverberating over a few days (I was on the highway here and high speed traffic came to a sudden stop due to a badly conceived lane closure. I had just about come to a complete stop shy of the car ahead of me, but the car behind me slammed into me and I hit the car in front of me. My car is a write-off), but if it had been a transport truck behind me I would probably not be typing this right now. So my reading life got an epiphany. Great that I'm saving favorite authors to spread their books out over time, but that's dick-all good to me if I'm struck dead. The day after this I was out for a walk and listening to John Irving being interviewed on a podcast. And it struck me that, here I am, DNFing this and that, falling for the latest hypes, and I haven't read John Irving in frigging YEARS, because, you know, the saving.
So I picked this one as my next to-read. Wanna know why? Might as well say yes, you've come this far. Because, what I like so much about John Irving is his fantastic character development. And, you can always count on one character that exhibits some sort of sexual diversity, and I admit to a voyeuristic kick to it all. But, my cheap thrills notwithstanding, Irving always presents these characters with empathy and understanding. So I was feeling like something of a sexual nature and, well, look at this cover. This had to deliver. Right?
Hooboy, right it is. This story is ALL about sex! Our main character is Billy Abbott, a bisexual, whose life we follow from his youth in a small Vermont boys' school, through the next several decades of his life. In One Person may be a bit too revealing for some people, so be forewarned if this is a problem for you. I loved it, and from someone who thinks he's seen it all, there were some revelations in here that I was quite struck by. I loved being with these characters and even though it got a little too weighted down by the subject matter, and by Irving's propensity to ramble on, it was a great read for me and just wonderful to be reading him again. I find it somewhat surprising that in so many discussions about his works, In One Person is never mentioned (that I've heard or read, anyway). I guess too much sex. Oh well.
I'm feeling 4.5 stars, but I'm going to round up here because these characters were great.
I will read John Irving again, and soon, as per my new philosophy....more
It's been a long time since I've read John Grisham. Oh wait. Actually, no. I did start The Partner a few years ago but it failed to interest me so I DIt's been a long time since I've read John Grisham. Oh wait. Actually, no. I did start The Partner a few years ago but it failed to interest me so I DNF'd it early on. But he did write one of my favourite legal thrillers, The Firm, which I devoured back when it was released. Unfortunately he ran his course with me by the time I finished The Pelican Brief.
Somehow A Painted House hit my radar recently. It was touted as one of his best works, and I'm always a sucker for coming of age stories. I wasn't disappointed. Clocking in at 460 pages, I found it to be a very fast read, and not only was the voice of a seven year old done well, so was the descriptions of what it meant to be a cotton sharecropper in early 1950s Arkansas, which I knew nothing about prior to reading this.
So, high marks for everything Grisham did. While it didn't hit the five star mark for me, it certainly was a strong four star read....more
Wow, what a great writer John Boyne is. In all of his novels, he had engaged me with his lively and believable dialog, and composed narratives that havWow, what a great writer John Boyne is. In all of his novels, he had engaged me with his lively and believable dialog, and composed narratives that have glued me to the pages. And he's done it again with All The Broken Places.
Regret is a wasted emotion, but I really wish I would have read The Boy in the Striped Pajamas first. I had thought about it, but the impressions I was getting was that it was more of a very young adult novel and he had caught some fire over glossing over the horrible details of the Nazi death camps. Of course, I should always ignore stuff like this and read for myself. Anyway, I was anxious to read his latest, so I elected to read the plot outline of it and I was fine for All The Broken Places. This is indeed sufficient to enjoy this novel, but yeah, I really do wish I had just gone ahead and read the first, to give me even more of a complete feel of Gretel's character. Be that as it may, I don't feel shortchanged at all. It just would have been a nice extra.
The story follows the life of Gretel, who was the 12 year old daughter of the commander of the Auschwitz concentration camp. Her story is old from a few periods in her life, present day as a 91 year old, and her teens/adulthood since fleeing Poland.
The novel moved like gangbusters, with great plotting through all periods, and I could hardly put it down. There are very few authors who can manage to affect me emotionally, and John Boyne really hit me in this one.
Very highly recommended from one of the great storytellers of our time, and will definitely be one of my top reads of the year....more
This is my second attempt to read this, and I managed to get past the first twenty pages this time before calling it at page 61.
Every podDNF'd at 15%.
This is my second attempt to read this, and I managed to get past the first twenty pages this time before calling it at page 61.
Every podcast, every reviewer whose opinions I usually jibe with, adored this book. They all raved about the characters and the family dynamics that progressed through this story. Everything I heard about this book were things that were totally my jam; that this is definitely the book for me. I love slow burns. I love great characters, and I love relationship dynamics. But this book just failed me. I felt nothing at all for these characters, and it's because I felt they were experienced at a high level. That is, I felt there was a lot of telling but very little showing. I was told what they were feeling and doing but felt totally disassociated from it. Everything I read to this point felt like the summarization you would get from a prologue or epilogue.
From everything I've heard, I'm certainly missing out on a good story but there is such a blandness I'm feeling that I have no desire to push through. At the time that I am typing this I have started Wellness by Nathan Hill and IMMEDIATELY I am taken with the characters.
This is just a matter of this author not connecting with me. It's not going to happen in this book so I'm out.
I am by far an outlier here, so try it for yourself....more
Add Emily St John Mandel to my list of favourite author who can do no wrong.
While her most popular novel Station Eleven is my least favourite of hers Add Emily St John Mandel to my list of favourite author who can do no wrong.
While her most popular novel Station Eleven is my least favourite of hers (3 stars, still liked it), I absolutely adored The Glass Hotel and Sea of Tranquility. A couple of weeks ago I heard one of my favourite podcasters including The Singer's Gun as one of her top 10 reads of the year, it reminded me that Ms Mandel still has a few titles in her backlist that I haven't gotten to. So, as I couldn't decide what to pick from my existing to-read pile, I decided on this one.
The Singer's Gun has more of a crime novel feel to it, in the way that crime was a part of The Glass Hotel. Despite a somewhat stilted beginning, due to alternating timelines requiring patience to settle into the story, once you're settled in the story flows beautifully. The story revolves around Anton and Aria, two cousins involved in the family's dealings with stolen artifacts. They eventually branch out and start their own line of fraud. I won't divulge any more plot as it is best discovered in the reading experience. As are the locales: the story is set in Brooklyn, Manhattan, and the Italian Island of Ischia, which is so breathtakingly beautiful in the novel I now long to go there.
I was less enthusiastic about how the novel ended, but that doesn't really matter. I had this reading experience pegged at five stars for 264 out of 265 pages so I refuse to downgrade it just for that. And the fact that this was only 265 pages is a huge plus. Such a small time commitment but such valued time reading it.
Before starting this review I looked back on my review for The Nix, his debut, granted 5 stars by yours truly, and noticed a loWhat a frigging writer.
Before starting this review I looked back on my review for The Nix, his debut, granted 5 stars by yours truly, and noticed a lot of the same things I want to say about him here. In that review I marveled at his observances on the human condition, very detailed but not so weighted that the story buckled under it.
Totally the same deal here. But his vehicle this time is the journey of the relationship of a couple, from their first views of each other, through marriage and parenting and mid-life crises. Nathan Hill covers just about every aspect of life in this story. Everything from love, death, social media, Facebook algorithms (holy shit), placebos, art, prairie life, city life, sex, parenting, fussy eaters, oh good lord, I've only scratched the surface. He takes EVERYTHING and analyzes them in great detail, and all of these aspects easily fall into the flow of the story.
I loved The Nix and I couldn't wait to see what he would do next. Wellness is what he did and I could barely put this book down. Now I'm trying to stop myself from travelling to wherever this guy lives and prevent him from leaving his house until he gives me another novel. I'm retired: I have the time. Beware, Nathan...(hey, I'll bring beer. You like Stella?)
This book was almost 700 pages long and as I got into the 600s I didn't want it to end. This is probably the highest compliment I can give.
I will say that there was a time or two when he seemed to go on a few pages too long on a couple of topics but I was still all in.
It is January and I may have already read my best book of the year.
Note: I hadn't intended for this review to get as personal about sexual abuse as it did. Scroll past these five paragraphs if you want to skip to the Note: I hadn't intended for this review to get as personal about sexual abuse as it did. Scroll past these five paragraphs if you want to skip to the actual review.
In the mid 80s here in Ottawa, a Catholic priest by the name of Dale Crampton was convicted of sexually abusing several altar boys throughout his career. It was one of the first cases of its kind, in what would soon be a global exposure of corruption throughout the Catholic church, as more cases would come to light.
I followed Crampton's case closely because I was one of those altar boys back in the early 70s. If this made you gasp, I'm sorry. But you can ease up because I was one of the lucky ones. Crampton had invited me and a couple of other boys to a movie and then to stay the night at his rectory. One of the other guys was a buddy of mine, and he had warned me about him. He said that Crampton wouldn't mess with him after a previous failed attempt, so he told me before we got to the theatre that he would sit between me and him. I wasn't sure if I really believed him because I had known Father Crampton a good while and thought he was a great guy, but I said yeah, okay. Crampton was a big man. He was very tall, good looking, and charismatic. It took quick and little effort for him to thwart my friend's plan and he placed himself so I was sitting on his right. For the entire movie, I was pushing his hand off my crotch. It was clear that I was having none of it and yet he persisted and the shoving back and forth went on for two hours. Later that night at his place he attempted to look down the front of my pants, just checking to see if I "had a belly under there". That was it.
His less fortunate victims were raped at his cottage.
I have never considered myself a victim because my experiences were comparatively light and I was not traumatized at all (just left with the impression that I was fiddled by an asshole priest and the ongoing regret that I didn't punch him in the face), but every now and then I'm hit with the realization that given different circumstances I may have been one of the cottage selects.
When Crampton was under investigation, there was a representative for the families who was spearheading this who was interviewed on the local news channel. They had published his phone number for anyone to call him if they were also victims or had more information. I called him that night and told him my story. He proceeded to tell me about the archdiocese being complicit and how they moved priests from parish to parish whenever things got hot. He described this as a "smorgasbord" for pedophile priests. He asked me if I would testify but I declined because frankly what I experienced wasn't near as awful as what others did, and also I was ashamed at the fact that I was 14 and should have been old enough to at least try to punch the shit out of him instead of simply shoving his hand back. It's 48 years later and I still live with that regret.
Crampton initially got off with "treatment for alcoholism and pedophilia". After public outrage this was appealed and he went to jail for 8 months. When he got out he was limited to office work for several years, until he was charged again when more victims from his past came to light. Shortly after, he jumped to his death from his highrise apartment in 2010. When I read about his suicide, would you believe I felt sadness? My first thoughts were that this was a man tormented by his demons and this was his only way out. A charitable thought, yes, from the good side of me. An alternate one would be that he was simply evil with no recourse. Only he knew for sure, and there weren't many words out of his mouth during his trials.
Did I just write all that? I didn't plan to go into such detail but I think it's helpful to know where I am coming from as a reader of this story.
Review:
John Boyne is one of my favourite authors. His characterization is second to none, his stories are always interesting, and his writing is compulsively readable. He also has a lot to say about growing up, sexuality, Ireland, and the Catholic church. This story obviously hit home for me. I wasn't even sure if I wanted to read it, I was actually intending to read Water, his latest, but the damn thing isn't available on this continent yet. However, I had said long ago that I would read anything by the man and so here we are.
Boyne tells this story from the perceptive of a good priest (they are out there, despite my having renounced Catholicism decades ago), from his childhood to his residency in a seminary at 17, to being ordained at the Vatican, and up to present day where the church still reels from sexual abuse scandals. There were a lot of interesting aspects to Odran's journey, things I never knew about as far as the Catholic hierarchy goes, and although on the surface this aspect may not seem all that gripping, it definitely kept me turning the pages. And this has nothing to do with being raised a Catholic. Boyne puts you into the head and emotions of his characters and I was all in, all the way. As far as the sexual abuse, the real guts of the story here, there were many parallels to what had occurred in the diocese here in Ottawa at the same time. This stuff was happening all over the globe, evidently. Given my proximity to the events here, the novel hit me deeply. His novels always do, but this one was tough at times. I always read for escapism but this brought reality crashing back. And that's not a bad thing because this was one terrific novel with a great finish. One fine novelist, this John Boyne....more
In the past I've started a few of my rambling reviews with: Let me tell you why I read.
This review may also get rambley, but alternatively I'm startinIn the past I've started a few of my rambling reviews with: Let me tell you why I read.
This review may also get rambley, but alternatively I'm starting this one with:
These are not the reasons I read:
I don't care about an author's skin colour or gender. I will not read a novel only because it addresses an important issue, or that it's extra special important as it's an "own voice" novel.
If this makes me sound like a selfish reader, well you're only partly right. I value my reading time highly and all I care about is good writing, great characters, and a good story. I don't need to be preached to, because frankly you're preaching to the choir and any heavy-handedness will come across as contrived to me. I know there are many readers out there who are conscientious about their reading lives. They have their reading bingo cards and for sure this novel will check at least three squares. Heck, Å·±¦ÓéÀÖ even has a Race genre tagged to it. But to put Tananarive Due's latest novels into one of those squares targeting a person of colour, a female writer, a novel about race in America's South in the 50's, is an enormous disservice to her. And I'm terribly afraid that my even mentioning this is an awful insult to her. But it happens. Podcasters talk about it all the time and I'm sure their hearts are in the right place about it. But man, it just seems so condescending.
Because Tananarive Due doesn't need it. She is one terrific writer who satisfied all of my selfish reader demands.
I don't even know where to go from here. Stream of consciousness writing coming up. This may get messy.
Tananarive Due (now that I know how to spell her name, it's fun to do.) wrote this novel based on an actual reform school in Florida in the 1950s, during the despicable Jim Crow era. She writes this from the heart as her great-uncle was a prisoner (there is no other word for it) at the actual school and lost his life there at age 15. The story follows Robert Stephens' experience as a 12 year old boy sentenced to six months for defending her sister with one kick to a white teen, and his family's efforts to get justice for him.
I could barely put the book down. Due is a terrific storyteller whose writing reminded me of Stephen King at his peak. There were some parts that were agony to get through and this is a testament to her skill as a writer. As a white Canadian man, it should go without saying that I couldn't possibly understand the black experience during the Jim Crow years. But in this novel I could feel it. I could feel white eyes on me as a black person and I have such a hard time accepting that. I don't think I'll ever shake it now. As a white man I can also say I can't for the life of me understand the hate these white people had, and the hate a lot of them still have to this day.
Anyway, I didn't mention the ghosts. There are ghosts in this story as well, and in a way that is totally acceptable to the story. How can there not be ghosts with the amount of black blood soaked into Florida soil (paraphrasing her) and the lives lost at the Reformatory? This was an exceptional read and the suspense of the last hundred pages or so drove me crazy.
I've had Tananarive Due on my reading list forever, for The Good House, which was ridiculously expensive for Kindle ($28 a few years ago!) and now that it is at a reasonable price I'll read that very soon. Although after reading The Reformatory, I'm less hesitant to pay a lot of money for her. Heck, I have to read all of her books.
Five stars don't do it justice at all. Best book of the year....more
I was feeling a lot of five-star vibe throughout most of this book for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, it's about an affair, and who doesn't enjoy this tI was feeling a lot of five-star vibe throughout most of this book for a couple of reasons.
Firstly, it's about an affair, and who doesn't enjoy this theme for a story? It's fun as heck to just sit by and watch the buildup and inevitable disaster unfold. Secondly, the writing was great. It's well worth noting (especially if you follow my reviews), that I enjoyed the writing despite it being in the present tense. Huge win, Mr. Dubow. I also found the narrative viewpoint to be refreshingly different.
As I'm typing this, I am unsure whether I still feel five stars. And the reason for this needs to be hidden with spoiler tags.
(view spoiler)[ What was a vicariously thrilling journey through the life of an affair ultimately ended with such a sad, sad feeling for Walter. Such a sad existence, in my opinion, essentially a lap dog to Maddy, willing to put aside all others and his dignity just to continue to be by her side.
As a side note, in my mid to late teens, I had a very good girl friend who I was head over heels in love with for years. It was never requited but every day I hoped she would suddenly feel the same way. I have no regrets in life, it's a wasted emotion, but I cannot imagine spending an entire lifetime in that state.
I was left feeling such sadness (and frustration) with Walter and it's been hard to shake.
But I think my biggest problem with the novel was Dubow's unfortunate choice at the end of the 3rd last chapter to use the portending words: That damn plane. So of course the ending was a dead giveaway for me, and I wasn't fooled by one word of that next chapter. Too bad. I think otherwise it would have been a much more effective impact. (hide spoiler)]
So, a good read for the most part. And I'm feeling four stars....more
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