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certifiedmalpal's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
trisha_thomas's review against another edition
4.0
Another incredible book that I grabbed because the movie was coming out. As a mother, I thought this book would be hard to read, dealing with issues that I didn't want to think too much about (a school shooting just before graduation).
But, this book has twists and turns and takes you down so many roads. It's a great read and keeps you guessing. The end was just great.
But, this book has twists and turns and takes you down so many roads. It's a great read and keeps you guessing. The end was just great.
saltycorpse's review against another edition
3.0
This novel was written in the wake of Columbine (2002 I believe) and it was a cross between the movies Stay and Elephant. The cover art and title seem to say it's a bit of an "Oprah's book club" genre book, but as is typical with Kasischke, it's way darker.
I wasn't thrilled at the ending/'May' bit, but everything up to that was excellent. I guessed the sort of "twist" really early on, but I still enjoyed the novel. I think Kasischke could write about anything and somehow make it terrifying and dig into a foxhole in your psyche. It's not my favourite Kasischke book, but it was still excellent.
I wasn't thrilled at the ending/'May' bit, but everything up to that was excellent. I guessed the sort of "twist" really early on, but I still enjoyed the novel. I think Kasischke could write about anything and somehow make it terrifying and dig into a foxhole in your psyche. It's not my favourite Kasischke book, but it was still excellent.
athenany's review against another edition
4.0
The best thing about this book is the evocative descriptions of a peaceful suburban life. I read this fifteen years ago and there are some beautiful anecdotes that still stand out in my memory. The plot sounded very promising on the book jacket but ended up being almost beside the point. The ending is sort of ambiguous, although apparently Ms. Kasischke has said that she had a particular ending in mind. In this case, I think the ambiguity works.
huncamuncamouse's review against another edition
3.0
This is a tricky one to review. The twist becomes obvious by the book's second half, which didn't really bother me. As always, Laura Kasischke's writing is lyrical and beautiful. However, this book's formal ambition was not matched by plot or character development.
Kasischke goes to great lengths to describe how perfect Diana's life is, following a terrible tragedy at her high school. The problem is that's not particularly interesting to read about how great someone's child is, how wonderful their husband, and how attractive she still is at 40 years old. This is necessary world building given the twist, but it's dull. And Diana's "perfect" life isn't upended until the midway point of the novel.
I also struggled with the flashbacks of high school Diana and Maureen. I typically enjoy vignettes because structurally they allow you to move through time fluidly and capture moments of time. However, that's really all they amounted to. I have no sense of Maureen as a character besides the most surface-level information. I know equally little about Diana, too. I also found it peculiar that adult Diana doesn't ruminate at all on the school shooting or express any guilt for her role. I have theories about why that is, but unfortunately, the conjectures I'm making are not supported by anything on the page, and if I have to do that much logical leapfrogging, the author did not earn that move.
I think this would have worked much better as a novella. As a novel, it's a fascinating concept, but it suffers from lacking execution. That being said, the beauty of the writing rescues this book. I also struggled with the Raising, which didn't come together either. I guess it's strange to say that Laura Kasischke is one of my favorite writers when 2 of her novels have only just been "okay" for me. But I think that's a major testament to how strong her writing is, how astute her eye for detail is, and the fluid lyricism she evokes.
Kasischke goes to great lengths to describe how perfect Diana's life is, following a terrible tragedy at her high school. The problem is that's not particularly interesting to read about how great someone's child is, how wonderful their husband, and how attractive she still is at 40 years old. This is necessary world building given the twist, but it's dull. And Diana's "perfect" life isn't upended until the midway point of the novel.
I also struggled with the flashbacks of high school Diana and Maureen. I typically enjoy vignettes because structurally they allow you to move through time fluidly and capture moments of time. However, that's really all they amounted to. I have no sense of Maureen as a character besides the most surface-level information. I know equally little about Diana, too. I also found it peculiar that adult Diana doesn't ruminate at all on the school shooting or express any guilt for her role. I have theories about why that is, but unfortunately, the conjectures I'm making are not supported by anything on the page, and if I have to do that much logical leapfrogging, the author did not earn that move.
I think this would have worked much better as a novella. As a novel, it's a fascinating concept, but it suffers from lacking execution. That being said, the beauty of the writing rescues this book. I also struggled with the Raising, which didn't come together either. I guess it's strange to say that Laura Kasischke is one of my favorite writers when 2 of her novels have only just been "okay" for me. But I think that's a major testament to how strong her writing is, how astute her eye for detail is, and the fluid lyricism she evokes.
daisy503's review against another edition
emotional
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.25
desiloubookroom's review against another edition
3.0
2.5 stars
It started of really really good. Then it started doing flash back scenes, which were easy to figure out when they were happening but I didn't really understand what was actually going on. Over all the story was good, but I'm still so confused
It started of really really good. Then it started doing flash back scenes, which were easy to figure out when they were happening but I didn't really understand what was actually going on. Over all the story was good, but I'm still so confused
kmc3050's review against another edition
2.0
Beautifully dreamy, but nothing more than okay. It would have been more mysterious without dates.
nursepersephone's review against another edition
4.0
Despite this being perhaps the best crafted of Laura Kasische's books, I didn't love it as much as the others. I think because it just took a bit to get to the real plot of it, or the surreal part, which is what I like most. For a while in the beginning it feels like the story of a woman with a husband and a kid and it is much more the kind of book my mom would like. Once the surreal part kicks in and the narrator starts to think she's losing it- that's where Kasische really shines.
scorpstar77's review
4.0
This is quite a lovely and disturbing book. I picked it up because I heard they are making a movie of it and it sounded interesting. It's about a girl who lives through a school shooting as a teenager, but her best friend dies, and the implications of that on her life as an adult with a child of her own. The book alternates between flashbacks of her life as a teenager and scenes from her current life. The flashbacks seem very grounded and realistic, while the present-day scenes seem much more dream-like. By the end, I wasn't sure what events in her present life had actually happened and which were just the crazy talking, so to speak. And I think that's the intent. The language is beautiful - Kasischke is a poet, and I mean that literally; she's published several books of poetry in addition to another novel or two. My biggest frustration was that the mystery isn't resolved in the end - there is some indication near the end that another character hates her and has done at least one thing to make her think she's crazy, but no reason of why is given. And to be honest, I'm not sure if that scene actually happened or if it was a figment of the main character's imagination. That's probably what the author intended, but it annoyed me; I like my mysteries with solutions, thank you :) But overall, I enjoyed the book and would recommend it - it's a quick read, not a huge time committment, but well worth it.