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zankzank's review against another edition
2.0
I loved Harding's last, and first book, Tinkers. I was ready and willing to fall in love with Enon and anticipated his poetic prose greedily. But this book fell so absurdly short, in my eyes. The main character descends to a caricature of a a drug addict so quickly that I had no sense of who he was before the death of his daughter and his ascent out madness and back into control feels just as jarring. The minimal plot, watching the main character circle the drain with very little thought besides retelling of disjointed memories of his daughter and thoughts around his drug addiction, is languid. Hearing this as an audiobook read by the author made it all the worse I think; I had strangely so little empathy for the main character. Would not suggest this book...
vanvicki's review against another edition
dark
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
laura_howard's review against another edition
3.0
A year in the life of a father who lost his daughter in an accident. Not gripping, but interesting and well written.
heather_g's review against another edition
3.0
The story of a man working through a major family tragedy. Really sad story but interesting as well.
dannb's review against another edition
3.0
This is a 3+ for me. The grief and angst are powerful. Harding allows to to get as close to experiencing this loss and totally losing it, without actually having to be in the situation.
shelfimprovement's review against another edition
3.0
Nothing ever causes me such consternation as the reluctant three-star rating. I sometimes worry that I give too many but to be fair, three stars is average and by very definition most books are going to be average.
But there are some books out there that I suspect I would enjoy more if I read them in a different time and place, if I were a member of different demographic, if I had different life experiences. In my former life as a bookseller, I tried very hard to remember that customers wouldn't always have the same taste in books as me and sometimes the right recommendation was for a book that I didn't particularly care for.
If I still worked in a bookstore, Enon might be one of those books.
Paul Harding won the Pulitzer in 2010 for Tinkers, a novel that kind of came out of nowhere, about the ruminations of a dying man. I didn't read it, because I'm not one to jump all over award winners and because it just didn't sound like the kind of thing that would resonate with me. Still, I was intrigued when I found his follow-up on NetGalley. Here Charlie, the grandson of the protagonist from Tinkers, must deal with the sudden loss of his thirteen-year-old daughter. Charlie and his wife have predictably divergent grieving processes and so it comes as no surprise that she moves back to her parents' home in Minnesota, leaving Charlie alone in Maine, a man without a family.
He doesn't handle it all that well.
This book is sad as hell, but you know that going in. And it means there's some lovely writing these brief pages but Harding doesn't let it cross into emotionally manipulative territory. And yet -- there's nothing particularly new here. It's all territory that's been well-worn by many other writers and Harding just doesn't offer anything fresh. I felt like there was a superlative novel bubbling underneath the surface, but Harding didn't quite push it through. At the same time, I don't doubt that there is an audience that will be able to more fully relate to Charlie and will find that this book resonates.
But there are some books out there that I suspect I would enjoy more if I read them in a different time and place, if I were a member of different demographic, if I had different life experiences. In my former life as a bookseller, I tried very hard to remember that customers wouldn't always have the same taste in books as me and sometimes the right recommendation was for a book that I didn't particularly care for.
If I still worked in a bookstore, Enon might be one of those books.
Paul Harding won the Pulitzer in 2010 for Tinkers, a novel that kind of came out of nowhere, about the ruminations of a dying man. I didn't read it, because I'm not one to jump all over award winners and because it just didn't sound like the kind of thing that would resonate with me. Still, I was intrigued when I found his follow-up on NetGalley. Here Charlie, the grandson of the protagonist from Tinkers, must deal with the sudden loss of his thirteen-year-old daughter. Charlie and his wife have predictably divergent grieving processes and so it comes as no surprise that she moves back to her parents' home in Minnesota, leaving Charlie alone in Maine, a man without a family.
He doesn't handle it all that well.
This book is sad as hell, but you know that going in. And it means there's some lovely writing these brief pages but Harding doesn't let it cross into emotionally manipulative territory. And yet -- there's nothing particularly new here. It's all territory that's been well-worn by many other writers and Harding just doesn't offer anything fresh. I felt like there was a superlative novel bubbling underneath the surface, but Harding didn't quite push it through. At the same time, I don't doubt that there is an audience that will be able to more fully relate to Charlie and will find that this book resonates.
perednia's review against another edition
5.0
Paul Harding's first novel, Tinkers, appeared to have captured lightning. It was a small book published by a small press. It was the story of an old man dying in his living room, thinking of his family who came before and who followed him. It also was a brilliant, eloquent, poetic, unflinching look at love, family and flawed human beings who deserve admiration and forgiveness. It won the Putlizer in one of those instances where the winner honored the award.
Harding's second novel mines similar territory and, similarly, captures lightning. Charlie Crosby is the grandson of George Crosby from Tinkers. He has suffered the tragedy of Kate, his young daughter, dying when her bicycle is struck by a distracted mom chauffering her own children. Charlie knows he is sinking into oblivion but he is too filled with despair to change.
The year following his daughter's death is a portrait of relentless grief. No matter where his mind may wander -- remembering times spent with his beloved grandfather or adored daughter -- Charlie always comes crashing back to the realization that Kate is gone. Not even the painkillers and booze keep that knowledge at bay for long.
There is a quietness in Harding's beautiful prose that permeates this study of a New Englander who loves his hometown nearly as much as he loves his daughter. That quietness, that underlying awareness that knowledge and strength can come to those who persevere, help turn this portrait of sorrow into one of the fullness of life.
Harding's second novel mines similar territory and, similarly, captures lightning. Charlie Crosby is the grandson of George Crosby from Tinkers. He has suffered the tragedy of Kate, his young daughter, dying when her bicycle is struck by a distracted mom chauffering her own children. Charlie knows he is sinking into oblivion but he is too filled with despair to change.
The year following his daughter's death is a portrait of relentless grief. No matter where his mind may wander -- remembering times spent with his beloved grandfather or adored daughter -- Charlie always comes crashing back to the realization that Kate is gone. Not even the painkillers and booze keep that knowledge at bay for long.
There is a quietness in Harding's beautiful prose that permeates this study of a New Englander who loves his hometown nearly as much as he loves his daughter. That quietness, that underlying awareness that knowledge and strength can come to those who persevere, help turn this portrait of sorrow into one of the fullness of life.
ejmiddleton's review against another edition
4.0
I don't know why I liked this one so much. I liked all the characters, and I guess for as fantastic as this man's experience with grief was, it always seemed to me believable.
jasmijn02's review against another edition
3.0
Charlie Crosby is in dit boek een vader die zijn 12-jarige dochter verliest door een ongeluk. Hij verliest niet alleen zijn dochter, maar ook zijn vrouw, die weer bij haar ouders gaat wonen. Alleen blijft hij achter in het huis waar ze ooit als gezin woonden. Als Charlie zijn hand breekt en pijnstillers nodig heeft, raakt hij verslaafd aan pillen en wat dies meer zij. Het boek is dan ook vooral een verslag van een verslaafde man, meer dan van een rouwende vader, en zelf vind ik dat "jammer". Ik heb niet veel met de emoties en gedachten van een verslaafde (daarom vond ik Patrick Melrose ook maar matig), maar had wel meer willen lezen van een rouwende vader.
jason461's review against another edition
4.0
Haunting is probably the word here. This book wasn't perfect, but I hope Paul Harding writes forever.