Which Brings Me to You: A Novel in Confessions (Steve Almond & Julianna Baggott, 2006)
More Steve Almond. I tend to request several things from one writer at the same time, so my holds often come in as themed batches. I liked this a ton, and think the collaboration worked wonderfully. The story opens on a failed wedding reception hookup between Jane and John. The two, who live in different states, decide to get to know one another through confessions they'll send back and forth through the mail. Except for the first and last chapters, the entire novel is made up of this correspondence. The premise sounds too cute, but the execution was really interesting and unexpected.
This book was devastating. That's overly dramatic, I know. But several passages, especially from Jane's letters, could have been ripped from my head, word for word. It's hard to see thoughts and feelings exactly like my own, laid bare on the page. The confessions are wonderful and terrible, and I believed in these two broken, sad people trying to make a connection. The final chapter let me down just a tiny bit, but don't let that stop you from trying this one out.
2 comments:
I read this one end of last year. I was glued to the pages! But, like you, I was let-down just a bit at the end. And now that I think about it, maybe that's the point (kind of mirroring how real-life isn't like letters, or internet dating, etc).
And, I wanted to ask you something -
I have noticed A LOT of the books I read, especially "chick lit" but also some of the more "literary" offerings as well, use derogatory characterizations - repeatedly - when referring to overweight female characters. This goes beyond describing someone as "fat," but seems to insinuate a clear dislike - if not hatred - of fat women (like myself). Often the fat character isn't a major character (amazing!), but it's like the author needs to make it clear that this person is not only fat, but completely distasteful/stupid/unattractive/evil/etc.
Jane Green is famous for this (and she's the size of a toothpick), and I have just seen it in "We Need to Talk about Kevin (ditto for that author) and "Women About Town."
So, I know you read a lot, and I just wondered if you have noticed this as well. And if so, would you mind keeping track (in the future) of things that jump out at you?
I am not sure where I am going with this - perhaps an article down the road, or just a long, feminist blog post - but I am looking for all the input I can get. I may even start a Flickr pool to see if I get any other people interested....
I can't believe I missed this comment when it was new! I'm emailing Jessica, but yes, this is a problem. And it's gross.
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