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A review by rebeccafromflorida
Carry the One by Carol Anshaw
3.0
Carry the One by Carol Anshaw was an interesting book that began with one disasterous event. After Carmen's wedding, her sister Alice, her sister-in-law Maude (Alice's new lover), her brother Nick, Nick's high as a kite girlfriend, Olivia, and a straggler named Tom, drive home. . . only to hit and kill a little girl who is walking home from a sleepover at the unlikely time of 2 AM.
This event seems to cause a downward spiral in the lives of those involved. Olivia, the driver, is jailed for the accident. Nick feels terribly guilty, since he was also on a multitude of drugs and had seen the girl before they hit her but didn't speak up because he thought she wasn't real. He tries everything to make it up to Olivia, but can't maintain sobriety, which is what Olivia needs if Nick is going to be in her life.
Carmen's marriage unravels and she tries to co-parent her son the best way she knows how. Alice is an artist, in an out of success, and has an on again, off again relationship with Maude, which is very unhealthy.
Tom seems to be the only one able to deal with the incident effectively, having written a successful song about the crash.
My thoughts? I enjoyed the book but was confused by the ending. As in Margaret Atwood's Cat's Eye, I just didn't understand the ending of Carry the One. What did I miss along the way? Am I supposed to understand the cryptic ending?
Also, the entire group is bonded together by this incident, and while I can see that their lives are spiraling out of control, I'm not sure if this incident is the cause. Carmen married Matt because she was pregnant, so it's not a huge surprise that the relationship isn't lasting. Nick was a huge drug addict before the accident, so being unable to stay sober isn't a surprise either. Alice falls into convenient relationships, and happened to be in this semi-destructive one with Maude, something they managed to start right before the accident took place.
This novel falls right in the middle for me. I enjoyed reading it but I wish the ending was more clear to me!
What are you reading this week?
Thanks for reading,
Rebecca @ Love at First Book
This event seems to cause a downward spiral in the lives of those involved. Olivia, the driver, is jailed for the accident. Nick feels terribly guilty, since he was also on a multitude of drugs and had seen the girl before they hit her but didn't speak up because he thought she wasn't real. He tries everything to make it up to Olivia, but can't maintain sobriety, which is what Olivia needs if Nick is going to be in her life.
Carmen's marriage unravels and she tries to co-parent her son the best way she knows how. Alice is an artist, in an out of success, and has an on again, off again relationship with Maude, which is very unhealthy.
Tom seems to be the only one able to deal with the incident effectively, having written a successful song about the crash.
My thoughts? I enjoyed the book but was confused by the ending. As in Margaret Atwood's Cat's Eye, I just didn't understand the ending of Carry the One. What did I miss along the way? Am I supposed to understand the cryptic ending?
Also, the entire group is bonded together by this incident, and while I can see that their lives are spiraling out of control, I'm not sure if this incident is the cause. Carmen married Matt because she was pregnant, so it's not a huge surprise that the relationship isn't lasting. Nick was a huge drug addict before the accident, so being unable to stay sober isn't a surprise either. Alice falls into convenient relationships, and happened to be in this semi-destructive one with Maude, something they managed to start right before the accident took place.
This novel falls right in the middle for me. I enjoyed reading it but I wish the ending was more clear to me!
What are you reading this week?
Thanks for reading,
Rebecca @ Love at First Book