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greensalbet 's review for:
The Cliffs
by J. Courtney Sullivan
emotional
informative
inspiring
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This novel takes place in a small, Maine town where the divide between the monied visiting class and the working class that keeps the town's services open and accessible is always rippling beneath the surface. Awadapquit, Maine, is a fictional town based on the real town of Ogunquit, Maine, about 28 miles south or Portsmouth. We learn early on that Jane Flangan, the novel's protagonist, has not had an easy growing-up experience in Awadapquit. She finds solace in an abandoned home on the water near the cliffs that offers peace and solitude on the water.
Several of the primary characters in the book are struggling with generational alcoholism and have not yet sought out recovery help.
The main story centers around Jane Flanagan, born and raised by her single mother in her grandmother's cottage in Ogunquit. Jane is the first family member to attend an American university, after which she goes on to earn a Master's and PhD. at Yale; next, she lands her dream job at Harvard's Schlesinger Library. Sister Holly and son Jason rent a home near mother Shirley; the resentment between the sisters is almost palatable; Jane left the family to create a life away from her past, while sister Holly stayed to care for her mother. Jane has recently taken a trial separation from her husband Paul, and has returned home after her mother's death, to declutter the family home and prepare it for selling.
The book touches on a couple of subjects not ordinarily found in family sagas/historical fiction: What native people were killed, or exiled, when the first white settlers discovered and claimed this scenic cliff-area in Maine? Second, what public actions and displays are archivists and historians creating to pay homage to these ancient, native cultures in the twenty-first century? And, finally, can psychics help any of these characters to understand themselves better?
Several of the primary characters in the book are struggling with generational alcoholism and have not yet sought out recovery help.
The main story centers around Jane Flanagan, born and raised by her single mother in her grandmother's cottage in Ogunquit. Jane is the first family member to attend an American university, after which she goes on to earn a Master's and PhD. at Yale; next, she lands her dream job at Harvard's Schlesinger Library. Sister Holly and son Jason rent a home near mother Shirley; the resentment between the sisters is almost palatable; Jane left the family to create a life away from her past, while sister Holly stayed to care for her mother. Jane has recently taken a trial separation from her husband Paul, and has returned home after her mother's death, to declutter the family home and prepare it for selling.
The book touches on a couple of subjects not ordinarily found in family sagas/historical fiction: What native people were killed, or exiled, when the first white settlers discovered and claimed this scenic cliff-area in Maine? Second, what public actions and displays are archivists and historians creating to pay homage to these ancient, native cultures in the twenty-first century? And, finally, can psychics help any of these characters to understand themselves better?