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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
A deep look into the complexities of a contemporary marriage between two multi-faceted characters. I found each point of view compelling and irreverent, and found myself rooting for the couple despite their secrets and downfalls. Anyone looking for a conventional love story probably won't love this one, but I did.
I couldn't decide what to rate this book. At first, I was only going to give it 2 stars, thanks to the pretentious writing and annoying plays interjected in. Then I was going to give it 3 stars after getting halfway through the second part of the book. Then I was going to give it 4 stars after some of the twists. I think I've finally settled in at 3 stars because of all the unexplainable, implausible, unrealistic bits.
Would probably rate this one a 4.5
This book was not what I expected. It was beautiful and complex and at times confusing (I'm not a fan of her writing style) and I had actually become a bit bored midway through the book and then it flipped to the Furies part of the story. A simple flip of a page and I was reading a completely different story. One that had twists i didn't even see coming.
This book was not what I expected. It was beautiful and complex and at times confusing (I'm not a fan of her writing style) and I had actually become a bit bored midway through the book and then it flipped to the Furies part of the story. A simple flip of a page and I was reading a completely different story. One that had twists i didn't even see coming.
Every marriage has two sides and all kinds of things in the middle, often shaped by things that began in our childhoods. Groff is an excellent writer--articulate, creative, erudite--and her characters are equal parts truthful and secretive. Lotto's perspective is given first from his privileged Florida childhood, through college, marriage, and eventual success (almost by accident) as a playwright. Mathilde enters Lotto's story in college and we aren't told of her childhood or even much of her thoughts until she takes over the focus after Lotto's death. Particularly in the second half of the book time is very fluid, and Groff expects intelligence of her readers. A wonderful and engaging study of privilege in the US and people moving through college and early careers to success and/or survival, and how that works, and doesn't, in tandem.
If I give this book 4 stars, I would have to go back and give Gilead 5 stars, which probably I should do anyway. I have wanted to read this book for ages, well, ever since Barack Obama said it was his favorite book of 2015. I heard it was about a marriage, more or less, and I like Lauren Groff.
Good things about the book, some well-drawn characters, interesting use of the literary scene in New York, and ... not sure what else. I did find it a good read, i.e. I wasn't having to force myself to read it, but looked forward to reading it every night.
Lotto Satterwhite is a golden child, the main male character in the book whom we read about from birth to death (oops). Tall, rich, charismatic, driven, loyal and faithful, entitled, he seems to have everything given to him without any effort, until he fails at acting after college. But inside, he is never quite as sure of himself as others think, and his one sure thing, that he depends on is the love of his wife, Mathilde, a tall, platinum blond goddess who seems to exist mostly to have hot sex with her husband even years after their wedding, and to be, well, a supportive wife. You know the kind, the ones who work their assess of while their husband goes to school or pursues an acting career, then who pay the bills and do the entertaining after hubby becomes successful?
Well, that's their marriage, until... I can't tell you, but in the second portion of the book when the reader learns of Mathilde's rather incredible childhood and past, the book takes on a whole different light.
This book is about the secrets we keep, the sacrifices we make, how events in our lives shape us. I'm sure it is about much more than that, but it really wasn't for me.
Good things about the book, some well-drawn characters, interesting use of the literary scene in New York, and ... not sure what else. I did find it a good read, i.e. I wasn't having to force myself to read it, but looked forward to reading it every night.
Lotto Satterwhite is a golden child, the main male character in the book whom we read about from birth to death (oops). Tall, rich, charismatic, driven, loyal and faithful, entitled, he seems to have everything given to him without any effort, until he fails at acting after college. But inside, he is never quite as sure of himself as others think, and his one sure thing, that he depends on is the love of his wife, Mathilde, a tall, platinum blond goddess who seems to exist mostly to have hot sex with her husband even years after their wedding, and to be, well, a supportive wife. You know the kind, the ones who work their assess of while their husband goes to school or pursues an acting career, then who pay the bills and do the entertaining after hubby becomes successful?
Well, that's their marriage, until... I can't tell you, but in the second portion of the book when the reader learns of Mathilde's rather incredible childhood and past, the book takes on a whole different light.
This book is about the secrets we keep, the sacrifices we make, how events in our lives shape us. I'm sure it is about much more than that, but it really wasn't for me.
reflective
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
No notes. Beautifully written, well-executed, memorable, meaningful, every good adjective I can think of. Where can I get my hands on everything else Lauren Groff has written?
Ten pages in, I didn't think I would like, or even finish this book. One hundred pages in, I couldn't put it down. Groff has a way of introducing bits and pieces of information that makes the book compelling. Just when you think you understand a character, there's a twist, and you look at that character in a different light.
I'm anxious to read another book by this author.
I'm anxious to read another book by this author.
I enjoyed this book but didn't LOVE it. With all the good things I'd heard and read about it, I think my expectations were a bit high. My greatest appreciation came in the last 50 pages. The first half tells you the story of the couple from his point of view. The second, from hers. At the end of the first half, I was tired of Lotto and wondered how clueless he was. The second half confirmed how clueless he was; how dependent she had become on him (and he her without his realization) and how invisible. Had she intentionally buried herself from the world through him or was it the typical side effect of a heterosexual marriage, or the marriage of one LARGE personality to a quieter (though smarter) one?
I almost gave up on this book but persevered. As another reviewer noted there are definitely similarities to Gone Girl. A relationship built on secrets or lies (your call) told first in husband's voice, then the wife's. A surprising twist at end that I didn't see coming. Find myself less interested in books with unlikeable characters which this book is full of.