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A review by kitten_nuisance
The Book of Ruth by Jane Hamilton
dark
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I have been meaning to reread this for some time, because I know I read it as a teen, but I didn't remember it hardly at all. Normally I remember lots of oddly precise details from books I read during that time period, though I think this may be because I read many of them numerous times. I couldn't have read this more than once. It did not come back to me as I read!
I was too young to understand what I was reading. Having read it now, and comparing it to Jane Hamilton's other book, The Map Of The World (which I did not like nearly as much, in no small part because of how removed it is from its characters), I have found a lot more to love about it.
It's hard to know how much about this is a spoiler, and who would care at this point. Ruth is presented as intellectually disabled in some way, but I think it takes a more experienced reader to see that she is not. She was neglected, emotionally abused, and didn't have the self esteem or ability to study on her own in order to get back on track--she understands abstract concepts and even advanced literature just fine on her own. By contrast, she meets a man called Ruby who *does* seem to have some kind of cognitive impairment, and at the very least, some terrible qualities and habits. Ruth first invents the person she wants Ruby to be and falls in love with that, then she focuses on what she calls his "good points." She does not realize there is more to this situation, and this isn't because she is intellectually disabled. It's because she is inexperienced and needs some form of love or approval. She does not know another way.
This book was written in 1988 (well, published--it may have been written even before that), and what seems like very light queer coding now was probably about as much as a mainstream novel could say then without scandal, risk of turning away publishers, etc. It seems that Ruth might not have known that being with another woman is a thing, but the mere description of her friend Daisy near-naked on a motorcycle sure made an impression on her.
These characters meet sad fates, but honestly, when it comes to my depressing literary fiction, it was close to the best thing that could have happened. Ruth doesn't see this by the end. But she has the right support system, and there's hope that she will come to know what we know. I hope she does.
I was too young to understand what I was reading. Having read it now, and comparing it to Jane Hamilton's other book, The Map Of The World (which I did not like nearly as much, in no small part because of how removed it is from its characters), I have found a lot more to love about it.
It's hard to know how much about this is a spoiler, and who would care at this point. Ruth is presented as intellectually disabled in some way, but I think it takes a more experienced reader to see that she is not. She was neglected, emotionally abused, and didn't have the self esteem or ability to study on her own in order to get back on track--she understands abstract concepts and even advanced literature just fine on her own. By contrast, she meets a man called Ruby who *does* seem to have some kind of cognitive impairment, and at the very least, some terrible qualities and habits. Ruth first invents the person she wants Ruby to be and falls in love with that, then she focuses on what she calls his "good points." She does not realize there is more to this situation, and this isn't because she is intellectually disabled. It's because she is inexperienced and needs some form of love or approval. She does not know another way.
This book was written in 1988 (well, published--it may have been written even before that), and what seems like very light queer coding now was probably about as much as a mainstream novel could say then without scandal, risk of turning away publishers, etc. It seems that Ruth might not have known that being with another woman is a thing, but the mere description of her friend Daisy near-naked on a motorcycle sure made an impression on her.
These characters meet sad fates, but honestly, when it comes to my depressing literary fiction, it was close to the best thing that could have happened. Ruth doesn't see this by the end. But she has the right support system, and there's hope that she will come to know what we know. I hope she does.