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A review by ridgewaygirl
Babysitter by Joyce Carol Oates
4.0
No one creates a sense of creepy dread like Joyce Carol Oates. In this latest novel, she leans on her strengths to tell the story of Hannah, the well-groomed wife of a wealthy businessman and mother of two small children in an upscale community north of Detroit during the 1980s. Hannah may be active in the kinds of volunteer opportunities available to well-off women and have a live-in nanny/housekeeper that allows ample free time and she may have a group of friends she meets for lunch, but she's still deeply insecure and lonely. Her marriage to a distracted and reactionary man who is likely sleeping with other women doesn't give her much in the way of support so when a powerful man indicates his interest in her, she finds herself trotting off to meet him in a Detroit hotel.
Which is where this story starts and quickly becomes, well, creepy in the most JCO way. Hannah lacks agency and when she does try to stand up against the men who order her around, she is quickly overwhelmed. There's a serial killer operating in the area as well, one who preys on children; although Hannah would rather not spend time thinking about that, the people around her, especially her husband, are fascinated. Hannah's behavior is frustrating throughout, with her inability to withstand even the slightest pressure. This is a book in which bad things happen, and then continue to happen, where the weak suffer and the powerful prey on those around them.
Joyce Carol Oates may not be breaking new ground with this novel published in her 84th year, but she's still writing novels that are worth reading and she's certainly playing to her strengths with this one.
Which is where this story starts and quickly becomes, well, creepy in the most JCO way. Hannah lacks agency and when she does try to stand up against the men who order her around, she is quickly overwhelmed. There's a serial killer operating in the area as well, one who preys on children; although Hannah would rather not spend time thinking about that, the people around her, especially her husband, are fascinated. Hannah's behavior is frustrating throughout, with her inability to withstand even the slightest pressure. This is a book in which bad things happen, and then continue to happen, where the weak suffer and the powerful prey on those around them.
Joyce Carol Oates may not be breaking new ground with this novel published in her 84th year, but she's still writing novels that are worth reading and she's certainly playing to her strengths with this one.