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lisa_mc's review against another edition
4.0
“A Gate at the Stairs” starts out looking like a typical coming-of-age story, as farm girl Tassie Keltjin wavers on the cusp of adulthood a couple of years into college. The daughter of a Jewish mother and a Lutheran boutique farmer, Tassie takes a job as a nanny for a couple in the process of adopting a child. She also plunges into a passionate romance with Reynaldo, a Brazilian classmate who turns out to be something other than what he first appears.
Sarah and Edward, the eccentric couple Tassie works for, adopt Mary-Emma, a mixed-race child, and likely for the first time are confronted with the ugly realities of racism. They react by forming a discussion/support group with other parents and talking everything through on Wednesdays over wine and snacks.
Everyone in this book is in some way strained, and restrained. Reynaldo hides a large part of his life from Tassie and won't - or can't - reciprocate the depth of her feelings for him. Sarah and Edward's prickly relationship is rooted in a desperate secret of their own. Tassie's brother gives more thought than many 18-year-olds about life after high school, but doubts his choice even after he decides to join the Army. Tassie, for her part, bounces between thinking about her place in the world and aimlessly drifting, and yet the events in her life bring her to a sad cynicism: “I was realizing that all new feelings from here on in would probably be bad ones. Surprises would no longer be good.”
The plot of "A Gate at the Stairs" takes a while to get going, but it doesn’t matter because in the meantime we can leisurely revel in the magical joy of Moore’s language — like a secret or a joke, shared just between writer and reader. Moore takes images and emotions - often not beautiful ones - and beautifully describes them, incisively compares them, hauntingly dissects them.
Moore also skewers white middle-class navel-gazing on the subject of race and racism, all the platitudes and look-how-open-minded-we-are talk that go with serious discussions but woefully little experience or action. That doesn't diminish the very real exploration of race and class attitudes in the book: calm and reasoned, unafraid.
One quibble with the plot is that the story line involving Tassie's brother takes a predictable turn, and though it is written as exquisitely as the rest of the pages, one would have liked to see it turn out less obviously.
But that small flaw is only a minor detraction from this thoughtful and thought-provoking novel, the language of which is infused with a beauty so piercing readers will feel as if they should bear a scar.
Sarah and Edward, the eccentric couple Tassie works for, adopt Mary-Emma, a mixed-race child, and likely for the first time are confronted with the ugly realities of racism. They react by forming a discussion/support group with other parents and talking everything through on Wednesdays over wine and snacks.
Everyone in this book is in some way strained, and restrained. Reynaldo hides a large part of his life from Tassie and won't - or can't - reciprocate the depth of her feelings for him. Sarah and Edward's prickly relationship is rooted in a desperate secret of their own. Tassie's brother gives more thought than many 18-year-olds about life after high school, but doubts his choice even after he decides to join the Army. Tassie, for her part, bounces between thinking about her place in the world and aimlessly drifting, and yet the events in her life bring her to a sad cynicism: “I was realizing that all new feelings from here on in would probably be bad ones. Surprises would no longer be good.”
The plot of "A Gate at the Stairs" takes a while to get going, but it doesn’t matter because in the meantime we can leisurely revel in the magical joy of Moore’s language — like a secret or a joke, shared just between writer and reader. Moore takes images and emotions - often not beautiful ones - and beautifully describes them, incisively compares them, hauntingly dissects them.
Moore also skewers white middle-class navel-gazing on the subject of race and racism, all the platitudes and look-how-open-minded-we-are talk that go with serious discussions but woefully little experience or action. That doesn't diminish the very real exploration of race and class attitudes in the book: calm and reasoned, unafraid.
One quibble with the plot is that the story line involving Tassie's brother takes a predictable turn, and though it is written as exquisitely as the rest of the pages, one would have liked to see it turn out less obviously.
But that small flaw is only a minor detraction from this thoughtful and thought-provoking novel, the language of which is infused with a beauty so piercing readers will feel as if they should bear a scar.
goodcook07's review against another edition
1.0
I would call this one of my most hated books of all time. Pointless and forgettable.
latetotheparty's review against another edition
2.0
The story was interesting and some parts made me laugh out loud, but I wanted the narrator to shut up. Her POV is very stream-of-consciousness like Dave Eggers, and I didn't care for that.
saraelm's review against another edition
4.0
I'd give 4 1/2 stars if I could - wonderfully unique voice, funny and sad.
seaswift14's review against another edition
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.5
shireen72's review against another edition
2.0
overly self-conscious and precious writing became aggravating quickly. the author gives the main character a voice that is suspiciously mature for a college freshman...
cozylittlebrownhouse's review against another edition
4.0
This was a really difficult book to rate for me. Parts of the book had me thinking "five stars" with others plummeting down to two stars. The prose was beautifully written and I was immediately sucked into the story of Tassie, Sarah, Edward, and Mary Emma. I actually found Sarah to be a much more interesting character than Tassie and wish the story would have focused more on her and her relationship with Edward and Mary Emma.
As for the negatives, I feel the two plots (the family she worked for / her personal life) did not connect at ALL, and I found the last 50 or so pages to be completely disjointed from the book. Tassie's family had such a small role in the book, so to have the life-changing event occur at the end of the novel was jarring and out of place for me as the reader. Also, I think the author tried to cram in WAY too may social issues into one book.
Good, sometimes great, but it only gets three stars.
As for the negatives, I feel the two plots (the family she worked for / her personal life) did not connect at ALL, and I found the last 50 or so pages to be completely disjointed from the book. Tassie's family had such a small role in the book, so to have the life-changing event occur at the end of the novel was jarring and out of place for me as the reader. Also, I think the author tried to cram in WAY too may social issues into one book.
Good, sometimes great, but it only gets three stars.
kerrym33's review against another edition
3.0
I picked up this book b/c it was one of the NYTimes' 10 best books of '09 and it takes place in a fictional version of Madison, WI, which holds a special place in my heart. The whole book for me evoked a feeling of sadness, but it was beautifully written and dealt with some big issues (racism, war, etc.). A good read.