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3.85 AVERAGE
3.85 AVERAGE
3.5. Started so strong..second half of book followed characters that weren't fully formed or not interesting enough to warrant 300 pages on their behalf. Edna Mae's arc was great, but dd and Naomi could have used more. Liked the perspective of women tho
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
challenging
emotional
sad
tense
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This is both beautifully written and a remarkably poignant novel. I wish from the bottom of my heart that I could crown this with the full five stars, but that is unfortunately impossible, if only because of the final quarter of the book or so. A Book of American Martyrs opens strongly, with the shotgun murder of a doctor and a volunteer at the abortion centre. From that moment on, you are propelled into the hearts and minds of those surrounding the event, the tragedy or the assassination depending on your viewpoint.
Joyce Carol Oates begins the book from the perspective of the murderer, Luther Dunphy as he walks up that fateful day and puts a shotgun bullet into the heads of the two men, killing them instantly. And from there it spirals into an exploration of the abortion debate, of justice and the death penalty, of religion and of family, grief and loss. I found it quite remarkable how well each of the different characters was displayed in all their faults and glories; it cannot have been easy writing from such opposing character viewpoints and yet managing not to fall into stereotypes or caricatures.
In fact, the entire thing is masterfully handled. Oates switches between characters, but each character narration is told by how they see themselves and indeed how others see them. Likewise, the writing style changes quite drastically at points, and whilst this could have become annoying it was instead so well done that I can only applaud Oates for creating a novel that is also a work of art and not screwing it up. Each character portrayal is put into context with background and understanding, and yet none of that feels superfluous or unnecessary, indeed some of these sections are what gives such a rich and varied feel to the novel as a whole.
And it isn't just the big issues that Oates does well, yet somehow without obviously sticking her oar in on either side. The characterisations and the family dynamics are wonderfully drawn out here, with two families losing the very centre of their household. One to tragedy (or assassination for being a baby killer...) the other to prison. The novel takes you through the heart of the drama with the court case and all the intricacies and delays, the various viewpoints and conflicts throughout, and then it drops you into the families. Two families, from two very different spectrum of society, trying to find their feet in this new and unfamiliar world... and let's face it, doing it bloody badly. Families split and fracture under the pressure, both dealing with very different and yet somehow similar issues.
The novel eventually zooms in and focusses on the two older daughters of both the families, chronicling them through adolescence and then adulthood. There are parts which are actively disturbing in the thorough insight they give into the darker aspects of society, sections made me draw breath in a gasp, some descriptions are both heart-breaking and undeniably powerful. At no point in this does Oates forget the family ties and relationship drama's that have been built up, instead she continues to build on them even as she allows the focus of the tale to become far more focussed.
So why only four stars? Because the last 150-200 odd pages were lacklustre in comparison to what had come before. You go from this really hard hitting and deftly drawn together narrative of many pieces and topical concerns to what is effectively two hundred pages of not a great deal at all. I enjoyed them, no doubt about that. They are well written, I can't deny that. But they are not of the same caliber as the majority of the novel. The focus is lost and instead it becomes a rather wishy-washy. The actual ending I did find both interesting and surprising, but that could have been done without pages upon pages of name dropping, cultural education and self-doubts.
Regardless, this is poignant, beautifully written and unbelievably powerful.
Joyce Carol Oates begins the book from the perspective of the murderer, Luther Dunphy as he walks up that fateful day and puts a shotgun bullet into the heads of the two men, killing them instantly. And from there it spirals into an exploration of the abortion debate, of justice and the death penalty, of religion and of family, grief and loss. I found it quite remarkable how well each of the different characters was displayed in all their faults and glories; it cannot have been easy writing from such opposing character viewpoints and yet managing not to fall into stereotypes or caricatures.
In fact, the entire thing is masterfully handled. Oates switches between characters, but each character narration is told by how they see themselves and indeed how others see them. Likewise, the writing style changes quite drastically at points, and whilst this could have become annoying it was instead so well done that I can only applaud Oates for creating a novel that is also a work of art and not screwing it up. Each character portrayal is put into context with background and understanding, and yet none of that feels superfluous or unnecessary, indeed some of these sections are what gives such a rich and varied feel to the novel as a whole.
And it isn't just the big issues that Oates does well, yet somehow without obviously sticking her oar in on either side. The characterisations and the family dynamics are wonderfully drawn out here, with two families losing the very centre of their household. One to tragedy (or assassination for being a baby killer...) the other to prison. The novel takes you through the heart of the drama with the court case and all the intricacies and delays, the various viewpoints and conflicts throughout, and then it drops you into the families. Two families, from two very different spectrum of society, trying to find their feet in this new and unfamiliar world... and let's face it, doing it bloody badly. Families split and fracture under the pressure, both dealing with very different and yet somehow similar issues.
The novel eventually zooms in and focusses on the two older daughters of both the families, chronicling them through adolescence and then adulthood. There are parts which are actively disturbing in the thorough insight they give into the darker aspects of society, sections made me draw breath in a gasp, some descriptions are both heart-breaking and undeniably powerful. At no point in this does Oates forget the family ties and relationship drama's that have been built up, instead she continues to build on them even as she allows the focus of the tale to become far more focussed.
So why only four stars? Because the last 150-200 odd pages were lacklustre in comparison to what had come before. You go from this really hard hitting and deftly drawn together narrative of many pieces and topical concerns to what is effectively two hundred pages of not a great deal at all. I enjoyed them, no doubt about that. They are well written, I can't deny that. But they are not of the same caliber as the majority of the novel. The focus is lost and instead it becomes a rather wishy-washy. The actual ending I did find both interesting and surprising, but that could have been done without pages upon pages of name dropping, cultural education and self-doubts.
Regardless, this is poignant, beautifully written and unbelievably powerful.
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
dark
sad
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I was so pleasantly surprised by this book!
I put it on hold when I read the synopsis because it sounded fairly interesting and with reproductive rights being a hot topic right now, I thought it would be a timely read. I was wary when I saw how long it was but I'm so glad I took the chance.
What I love most is Joyce Carol Oates' ability to make me empathize with both sides of the story. Some scenes were far-fetched but there were moments when my heart ached for these families and the repercussions of their patriarchal figures.
I decided on 4 stars because I really do think the length was unnecessary. Some good editing could have pared down sections in the middle that seemed to carry on without much contribution to the actual story. But I'm still thinking about the ending. One of the best I've read in a while!
I put it on hold when I read the synopsis because it sounded fairly interesting and with reproductive rights being a hot topic right now, I thought it would be a timely read. I was wary when I saw how long it was but I'm so glad I took the chance.
What I love most is Joyce Carol Oates' ability to make me empathize with both sides of the story. Some scenes were far-fetched
Spoiler
That scene with finding dead babies in the dumpster? Sensationalism at its finest.I decided on 4 stars because I really do think the length was unnecessary. Some good editing could have pared down sections in the middle that seemed to carry on without much contribution to the actual story. But I'm still thinking about the ending. One of the best I've read in a while!
Joyce Carol Oates narra la historia de dos familias completamente opuestas a raíz del asesinato del miembro de una de ellas a manos del otro; las reacciones y consecuencias a partir del hecho le sirven a la autora para hacer un retrato de la gran división que hay en Estados Unidos ahora mismo, aunque podría extraerse también cierta reflexión sobre la polarización de la opinión y las ideas a un nivel general.
Oates crea dos arquetipos de familia (una, la progresista, demócrata, probablemente lo que el trumpismo definiría como 'élite cultural'; otra profundamente religiosa, de extracción más humilde, el típico perfil white trash que todo el mundo piensa que ha dado la victoria a Trump) pero eso no le impide desarrollar una realidad más compleja alrededor de aquellas a quien les toca lidiar con las consecuencias del acto que ha desarticulado sus familias, y que son las verdaderas protagonistas del libro.
Que nadie se asuste: no hay equidistancia en ninguno de los temas que toca el libro (aborto, feminismo, educación, privilegios, y un largo etcétera) porque Oates tiene muy clara su opinión al respecto. Se puede hacer un poco largo y en ocasiones marea demasiado la perdiz, pero es un librazo.
Oates crea dos arquetipos de familia (una, la progresista, demócrata, probablemente lo que el trumpismo definiría como 'élite cultural'; otra profundamente religiosa, de extracción más humilde, el típico perfil white trash que todo el mundo piensa que ha dado la victoria a Trump) pero eso no le impide desarrollar una realidad más compleja alrededor de aquellas a quien les toca lidiar con las consecuencias del acto que ha desarticulado sus familias, y que son las verdaderas protagonistas del libro.
Que nadie se asuste: no hay equidistancia en ninguno de los temas que toca el libro (aborto, feminismo, educación, privilegios, y un largo etcétera) porque Oates tiene muy clara su opinión al respecto. Se puede hacer un poco largo y en ocasiones marea demasiado la perdiz, pero es un librazo.
challenging
emotional
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
A Book of American Martyrs is a large tome which follows two families connected by a shooting at an abortion clinic. The books examines how the shooting came to be as well as its ramifications over the years. Seeing into the mind of Luther Dunphy who is convinced God wants him to kill Gus Voorhees, a doctor who provides abortion services, was chilling. I loved the breadth and depth of this book, the way it explored events over time and through many different lenses. At one point I was irked by some repetition that I noticed but then I remembered this is how most of us operate in real life, often returning to crucial events, thinking about them over and over. However, I did feel some parts of the book wandered too far from the key focus. I personally could have done with a lot less boxing.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Gun violence, Rape, Grief
Moderate: Abortion