Hello, Goodbye, I'm glad I stuck around

Goodbye Without Leaving by Laurie Colwin was published by Harper Perennial in 1991, and fter nearly a quarter of a century, it may be safe to say we (fickle readers) will never agree on it.

Here's my take: the first half of the book was all about characterization, and plot development just had to wait. I'm rather impatient, and I'll admit I almost didn't wait around for the action to pick up, but I'm glad I did. Once main character Geraldine, the former shake-your-thing back-up singing Shakette, got married (rather against her better judgement), got a job and had a child, things started to really move.

And, since Colwin had fleshed out the characters so that I really knew and liked them, I was rarin' to go along for the ride. When Geraldine's best friend (who was dating a married man) left to become a nun right before Geraldine's European returned to his home continent was a bit disappointing, but only because I liked those girls so much, I wanted to watch them have a little more fun. Not that nunneries aren't fun...

The point is, I found it easy to forgive Colwin for a lack of action at the beginning precisely because she spent the first several chapters letting me develop a relationship with her characters.

Of course, other reviewers have reported feeling the the complete opposite. Decide for yourself. (As if you had any other option, right?) I've made my decision, and I'll happily dive into another of Colwin's works, fiction or non-fiction.

What I particularly enjoyed about Goodbye and specifically, Geraldine's character, was her honesty in admitting her disappointment at not only not fulfilling life's expectations of her -  her, the good girl, who got good grades in a good school, with all the advantages - utterly failing to raise a perfectly manicured child and tuck a sharp corner in her slip-covered couch but also her honesty about failing herself, to be a self she could be proud of. (Hint: that self had nothing to do with slip-covers.)

Sigh. Well, speaking of unfulfilled potential, back to work I guess.

But first, maybe a stop at the library... what are you reading, anyway?

~Diane Stresing

Walls Bares, Bears Much in The Glass Castle

Jeanette Walls' adventurous childhood, thanks to her rather dangerously degenerate parents, scarred her inside and out. She also came out of the experience with a wicked sense of humor and a delightful way with words.

The Glass Castle is a book that I am glad I could not write - I didn't move halfway across the country locked in the back of a U-haul, visit call girls, or build character fighting with sewer rats while growing up, for example - but I am glad Walls wrote of her experiences.

It is a work of nonfiction that is quite difficult to believe at times.

Even more surprising, in the acknowledgement, Walls thanks just about everyone in her family for their support. Memoirs like The Glass Castle, at least the ones I know, don't come out of families where everyone is still speaking to each other. It seems the Walls family could appear together on the Dr. Phil show and no one would need to be restrained.

The book opens in the present, in New York City, with the author in a limo rolling by a dumpster where her mother is foraging. That kind of opening is called a "good grip" and Walls doesn't let go as she drags you into the past with her. First stop: the kitchen, where as a toddler, Jeanette was badly burned. She was cooking her own dinner. Which isn't necessarily neglectful or bad - why, don't you think we coddle our kids a little too much, really?

See, while the Walls kids had little growing up - including food, safety, and the records they sometimes needed to be enrolled in school - they had smart parents who expected the kids to learn and reach their full intellectual and creative potentials. It could be argued that the parents were criminally negligent, or that they did as well or better than the "average" family, whatever that is.

It certainly could be argued, too, that Walls is overly driven and has been all her life in an effort to hide from or overcome her past. It's hard to suggest she's not at least a little scarred by her upbringing; and yet, we are all better off because she chose to share the stories behind those scars.

Which makes me think maybe the Walls parents weren't quite as bad as they sound, and makes me remember something my parents taught me: people who live in glass castles shouldn't throw stones.

~Diane Stresing

Don't it figure? Just as I was about to hit 'publish,' I find out the movie is going into production. Which prompts me to say two more things: 1, Read the book before you see the movie. The book's always better. And 2, How can a 23yo director "get" this story? Wishing you luck, Jennifer Lawrence... and lots of insight. 

Picture of a Perfect Book Review

First, kudos to LA Times Book Critic David Ulin (and to LA Times, period, for having a book section).  Second, damn. Ulin's review of Hilton Als's new compilation of essays, White Girls, has it all.

Beautiful language.
Context - about the book, the author, and how each fits into the literary landscape.
Enough background and synopsis - in just a few paragraphs - to allow prospective readers to discern whether they are likely to enjoy the book.

And that's it.

Reviewing books is like a lot of other things, folks. Professionals make it look deceptively easy, and yet they produce something completely useful.

Thank you, Mr. Ulin.

So, readers - will you pick up White Girls?

~Diane Stresing