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A review by stevienlcf
Astonish Me by Maggie Shipstead
4.0
Spanning three decades and a handful of cities, including New York and Paris, Shipstead grounds "Astonish Me" in the rarified world of professional ballet. It is 1977, and Joan Joyce, a member of the company, recognizes that despite her rigorous discipline, her ballet career has run its course. Pregnant, she reunites with her best friend from home, Jacob, a "reasonably handsome, affable" man who has pined for Joan since high school. They move to Southern California, where Joan gives birth to their son, Harry, and opens a dance studio. Jacob wants to satisfy Joan and be a good father to Harry, but he realizes that the "unobtainable" Joan cannot love him the way he wanted her to.
Before their marriage, Joan had a one-night stand with the dazzling Soviet dancer, Arslan Rusakov, a stand-in for Mikhail Baryshnikov. Joan helped Arslan defect and "for two months, maybe three, [she] was the main woman, the lead -- the one on his arm at parties and events, famous as his accomplice, the brave girl in the news story -- but she slipped bit by bit down into the ensemble cast." Tormented by her own inadequacies, Joan leaves Arslan and the company, but the repercussions of their affair form the book's twist, although even the most inattentive reader could surely see the twist coming.
Although the novel is weak on plot, Shipstead does a masterful job of presenting the inner-lives of her rich characters, particularly Joan's former roommate, Elaine Costas, who had a long affair with the company's artistic director, one of the most famous choreographers of the 20th century, and Chloe Wheelock, a neighbor and ballet protege whose relationship with Harry mirrors Joan's relationship with Arslan. "Astonish Me" is not just an expose of the punishing world of ballet where even the most dedicated dancer may be enagged in a constant battle with her own limbs, but is also a rumination on universal themes, such as insecurity, friendship and love.
Before their marriage, Joan had a one-night stand with the dazzling Soviet dancer, Arslan Rusakov, a stand-in for Mikhail Baryshnikov. Joan helped Arslan defect and "for two months, maybe three, [she] was the main woman, the lead -- the one on his arm at parties and events, famous as his accomplice, the brave girl in the news story -- but she slipped bit by bit down into the ensemble cast." Tormented by her own inadequacies, Joan leaves Arslan and the company, but the repercussions of their affair form the book's twist, although even the most inattentive reader could surely see the twist coming.
Although the novel is weak on plot, Shipstead does a masterful job of presenting the inner-lives of her rich characters, particularly Joan's former roommate, Elaine Costas, who had a long affair with the company's artistic director, one of the most famous choreographers of the 20th century, and Chloe Wheelock, a neighbor and ballet protege whose relationship with Harry mirrors Joan's relationship with Arslan. "Astonish Me" is not just an expose of the punishing world of ballet where even the most dedicated dancer may be enagged in a constant battle with her own limbs, but is also a rumination on universal themes, such as insecurity, friendship and love.