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2.58 AVERAGE
2.58 AVERAGE
I didn't get very far with this book. I didn't care for the characters, nor did I care what happened to them.
This book held my interest enough to finish it, but it was a letdown in the end. I don't think I really got the point-if it even had one.
I absolutely loved Book of Ruth, which is why I picked up a few more of Jane Hamilton’s novels at the library, but this one fell short for me.
Synopsis:
"Married for 12 years, Laura and Charlie Rider have come to share almost everything: their nursery business, their love for their animals, and, most especially, their zeal for storytelling. And though they no longer share a bed, they are happy enough continuing along in their pleasant, platonic routine. Then Charlie begins an email exchange in earnest with Jenna Faroli, the host of a popular radio show, and, according to Laura, "the single most famous person in the town." Seeing her opportunity, Laura cannot resist using Charlie’s new connection to promote her writing skills, and together, the couple crafts florid, strangely intimate messages that entice Jenna into their game. "The Project," as they come to call it, quickly spins out of control. As the lines between Laura’s words and Charlie’s feelings become blurred, Jenna finds herself effected in ways most disturbing, while Laura is transformed into an artist of the highest caliber—in her own mind. The end results are hilarious and poignant, and for Laura Rider, beyond even her wildest imagination. "
It had a rough start, some of the writing towards the beginning forced me to reread a sentence or two to get to their meaning. Too many words and emotions in one sentence? Once we get to the point where we are introduced to all the characters, it flows simpler.
I loved the packaging of this little book, it was quite adorable. A cute little hardcover with a vintage cover, but I had mixed feelings about the contents. I could not bring myself to empathize with any of the main characters and the subject matter was pretty shallow, or convoluted. I can't make up my mind. It is good that it was an 'easy read'; I am glad to not have spent a lot of time on it. I do not think I enjoy reading about flippant infidelity ***************
Please visit the Burton Review to read the rest... giveaway etc...
http://burtonreview.blogspot.com/
You know, my gut told me Laura Rider’s Masterpiece was going to be disappointing chicklit. But I didn’t listen to my gut. Instead I listened to the voice in my head. That voice was Jane Hamilton’s, who I sew read in 2007 at The Loft. She was there as judge of the McKnight Fellowships (I think) and she gave such a great speech about writing and how even though people keep telling her to write a memoir or something other than fiction, she doesn’t because nobody realizes that those kinds of writing aren’t the same thing. I was smitten.
Then she read from the beginning of her work in progress, a book about a bored Wisconsin woman who runs a garden shop with her husband. It was witty and funny and her main character, Laura Rider, was obsessed with a public radio personality, Jenna Faroli. What she read was funny and witty. So when I saw the book had finally been released, I ignored my gut and followed my head.
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Then she read from the beginning of her work in progress, a book about a bored Wisconsin woman who runs a garden shop with her husband. It was witty and funny and her main character, Laura Rider, was obsessed with a public radio personality, Jenna Faroli. What she read was funny and witty. So when I saw the book had finally been released, I ignored my gut and followed my head.
read more
Check out my review at http://bookaweekwithjen.blogspot.com/2009/04/book-35-of-52-laura-riders-masterpiece.html
This is really a one-and-a-half star kind of book, but I'm bumping it up to two because I was able to finish it. Yup, that's where I draw my line. And that should tell you something about what I really think of Laura Rider's Masterpiece.
First off, neither this book nor Laura Rider's is anything close to a masterpiece. Of course, the title was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, but if you're going to attach that kind of name to your book, you better be ready for the inevitable puns that follow.
Secondly, I enjoy a good satirical novel as much as the next person, but it really has to be good. This just wasn't. I read 214 pages and I still don't get what Charlie saw in Jenna, what Jenna saw in Charlie, or what Laura saw in Charlie or Jenna. If you aren't on board with a satire's characters, then the "joke" just isn't that funny.
I could go on, but I want to spare Jane Hamilton the additional criticism as I did enjoy A Map of the World and The Book of Ruth. Stick to those kinds of books in the future, Hamilton. Leave the sex farces to someone else.
First off, neither this book nor Laura Rider's is anything close to a masterpiece. Of course, the title was meant to be tongue-in-cheek, but if you're going to attach that kind of name to your book, you better be ready for the inevitable puns that follow.
Secondly, I enjoy a good satirical novel as much as the next person, but it really has to be good. This just wasn't. I read 214 pages and I still don't get what Charlie saw in Jenna, what Jenna saw in Charlie, or what Laura saw in Charlie or Jenna. If you aren't on board with a satire's characters, then the "joke" just isn't that funny.
I could go on, but I want to spare Jane Hamilton the additional criticism as I did enjoy A Map of the World and The Book of Ruth. Stick to those kinds of books in the future, Hamilton. Leave the sex farces to someone else.
So, I could say that this was a bizarre book, and that would be accurate because these characters so frequently made decisions that were undoubtedly stupid and ridiculous, yet... I really enjoyed it for it's oddness. The whole thing was a bit surreal, even when I found myself able to understand the characters' emotions or motivations. I found myself simultaneously laughing in joy and shaking my head in disbelief. These characters were absolutely unique-- and they were like open books throughout the entire novel (pardon the lame literary pun). The storyline was like no other, and I found myself wondering what happens next as the book came to an end.
Great beginning turns into a bizarre story. Laura Rider has "sexual fatigue" from her exuberant husband of 12 years, Charlie. They agree to stop having sex and seem to be living a nice life, running their impressive and beautiful gardening farm. But then Jenna Faroli, an NPR personality similar to Terry Gross, enters their lives. Laura loves Jenna's show and wants to use her as a model for Every Woman in her quest to write a great romance novel. Charlie and Jenna meet by chance and form a friendship through email.
Not sure what Jane Hamilton was trying to accomplish with this novel - an exploration of what love really is? Does it have to be fire and passion and heartache or can there be "conscious romance" that avoids all the mess? But it ends up abruptly switching focus from Charlie and Jenna back to Laura and tries to make a statement about authorship instead.
This book may just be over my head, like many of the literary references it contains!
Not sure what Jane Hamilton was trying to accomplish with this novel - an exploration of what love really is? Does it have to be fire and passion and heartache or can there be "conscious romance" that avoids all the mess? But it ends up abruptly switching focus from Charlie and Jenna back to Laura and tries to make a statement about authorship instead.
This book may just be over my head, like many of the literary references it contains!
I read this book because of an intriguing review that described it as "chick lit with delusions of literary grandeur". I wasn't impressed. Laura Rider wants to write a novel. She comes up with a plan to study characters first hand--when her husband befriends her hero, an national radio celebrity. The ensuing affair 'affects' Laura only slightly as she is able to rationally dissect the relationship that develops. The book did have a slightly old-fashioned feel (that was actually interrupted by email, identity theft and other modern references). Maybe that is what gives the book 'literary grandeur'.