Reviews

At Paradise Gate by Jane Smiley

pidgevorg's review against another edition

3.0

So my first thought was "meh..." Then it occurred to me that it would be so much better as a play, with half of the POV character's mental rambling cut out, and the scenes and people she reminisces about drifting in and out like ghosts. The set and clothes would be minimal, and the "ghost" memories would be more elaborately dressed and detailed. And better lit. Then I imagined the stage evenly divided into his and her bedrooms, with Anna in her bedroom, mesmerized by the "ghost" scenes acted out in front of her, while her dying husband calls and calls for her next door, more and more worried... Then I thought, but what about the dog? How would you have the dog onstage? But then I realized that obviously the dog could just be noises offstage--not even dog noises, just bumps, crashes, scratching, etc, only the characters assume it's the dog. Or they can crane their necks and "see" it somewhere off to the side and yell at it, but the audience can't see it, it's just these creepy sounds on the periphery.
So anyway, I totally psyched myself up for this minimalist/surrealist/spooky-awesome play. And then I came down to earth and had to read 100 more pages of the actual book. Which is none of the above. Sigh. Why do I do this to myself? I don't even watch theater... But you know what, I'll just pretend like this was all Jane Smiley's intention all along. To inspire an average novel-reading pleb like me to greater appreciation of theater...

dommdy's review against another edition

4.0

I’m in my 60s and interested in reading about older people and their reflections on life and death. This novel’s themes fit perfectly for my current pursuit.