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SJane

SJane

Currently reading

Almost No Memory
Lydia Davis
Selected Poems
Philippe Jaccottet
The Tiger's Wife
Téa Obreht
Charles Dickens (Penguin Lives)
Jane Smiley
The Mansion of Happiness
Robin Ekiss
Schriften
Erik Satie
Why Did I Ever - Mary Robison I found this manic and entertaining and ultimately worthwhile, although it was sometimes hard to get my hooks into it. The story is told as a series of short quotidian narratives by the character Money Breton, whose son has been the victim of some terrible sex crime, whose daughter is a recovering addict, and who herself seems to be under-medicated for ADD. There are a couple other key characters, including an imperfect boyfriend, a bitchy Hollywood boss, and the Deaf Lady, who was my favorite. The book is punctuated with some very funny moments, but it’s a case of the funny throwing salt on the sad. It is interesting how all these fleeting thoughts, observations and exchanges swell into a book and a plot. The ‘outtake’ format is at once engaging and disconcertingly choppy.

I have to say it isn’t one of my favorite books, but it was interesting to read both for the concept and execution.