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3.16 AVERAGE
3.16 AVERAGE
While the story was very amusing and kept me reading the whole time, I felt as if the focus of the tale was lost near the end. The original story merely withered away. I am a fan of open endings, but in this case it just seemed unfinished, as if she did not know how to end the tale. Stylistically, while there were a couple of nice metaphors, a lot of the alliteration seemed forced, and the subplot (about Tassie's boyfriend) seemed unnecessary and unlikely.
All in all, it's a pretty fun read, but I would not consider it the masterpiece some reviewers have made it out to be.
All in all, it's a pretty fun read, but I would not consider it the masterpiece some reviewers have made it out to be.
Moore is a marvelous writer. She writes poetry in her novels. But, that said, I could not give this five stars because I was left with wanting more.
Lorrie Moore is kind of an acquired taste. Her fertile mind and writing style sometimes get in the way of the plot; I don't think it's a matter of editing--it's about whether or not you enjoy her particular circuitous routes to truths and storytelling.
And the story here is rather weighty. Moore's narrator, Tassie, is only 20, and she has a lot of monumental events happen to her in a short period of time. She tries, like any very young person, to sort these out, but Moore lets the confusion and erratic behavior that comes from being 20 steer her actions. We're hearing the story from an older Tassie, years later--but the choices she makes really feel like those of a 20-year old college student, trying to figure out who she is, and why the world is so inexplicable. There's a little humor, a touch of sarcasm and a whole lot of stumbling around.
The heart of the story is Tassie's job as a babysitter for a biracial child being adopted by a white couple. As the white parent of an Asian son, the dynamics of this ring very true to me--it's a series of unanswered questions. In addition, there's a boyfriend who turns out to be not who he says he is, and a brother seeking her help and reassurance. Tassie often feels like the only sane person in her world.
Moore's narrative style occasionally (for me) gets in the way, with an overdose of description--so many plants! so much food!-- that slows down the story, but only sometimes. The writing is mostly delicious, but when the story is as compelling and layered as this one, the reader wants to know what happens next.
And the story here is rather weighty. Moore's narrator, Tassie, is only 20, and she has a lot of monumental events happen to her in a short period of time. She tries, like any very young person, to sort these out, but Moore lets the confusion and erratic behavior that comes from being 20 steer her actions. We're hearing the story from an older Tassie, years later--but the choices she makes really feel like those of a 20-year old college student, trying to figure out who she is, and why the world is so inexplicable. There's a little humor, a touch of sarcasm and a whole lot of stumbling around.
The heart of the story is Tassie's job as a babysitter for a biracial child being adopted by a white couple. As the white parent of an Asian son, the dynamics of this ring very true to me--it's a series of unanswered questions. In addition, there's a boyfriend who turns out to be not who he says he is, and a brother seeking her help and reassurance. Tassie often feels like the only sane person in her world.
Moore's narrative style occasionally (for me) gets in the way, with an overdose of description--so many plants! so much food!-- that slows down the story, but only sometimes. The writing is mostly delicious, but when the story is as compelling and layered as this one, the reader wants to know what happens next.
This is the book that made me change my mind about Lorrie Moore. (Birds of America made me think she was hugely overrated.) A total page-turner with so many moments of beautiful writing and a final 1/3 that just ripped the heart right out of me so that I stayed up reading and crying until 3:00 am. Though I still wish she'd stop with the cutesy observations about language - I refuse to believe that characters in the midst of tragedy would stop to ponder terrible puns. ("You put the 'soul' in solider"? Groan...)
I enjoyed this book, but didn't quite find it as outstanding as some of the reviews I read led me to believe it would be...
I managed to read just over half of this novel before I abandoned it. Life is too short and there are too many books to read to waste time on a novel that is full of useless filler, superfluous writing, and little intrigue to keep the plot going. A great disappointment- especially considering the critical praise it has been given.
for years I've heard what a great writer she is, a favorite of other writers. But this book was just OK for me.
More 3.5 than 4. Well-written, good enough story, yet it's not believable that the character (age 20) thinks the way she does. The language and thoughts are, for the most part, those of a much more experienced person, not someone from a rather sheltered country life.
I am a fan of Lorrie Moore - especially her short story collection, "Like Life". "A Gate at the Stairs" was quite good until the last 30 pages or so where it falls flat. Moore has already drained you so much 3/4 of the way through that the tragedies she heaps on in the final act lose their power -- you are almost numb to it. Perhaps that was her point but the ending felt like it didn't belong.
This book was all over the place. The minute I thought I had figured out where the author was headed, she would switch paths and head in a completely other direction. In the end I gave up and just allowed it to be. None of this book makes any sense. That said, the writing is so good that I will give the author another shot. Maybe I’m just a sucker for punishment.