Scan barcode
A review by caroline77
American Wife by Curtis Sittenfeld
5.0
***NO SPOILERS***
As she did with [b:Prep|9844|Prep|Curtis Sittenfeld|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386925666l/9844._SY75_.jpg|2317177], Curtis Sittenfeld tackled privilege (in general) and, to a lesser extent, white privilege, in this sweeping novel. American Wife is based loosely on the life of Laura Bush--"loosely" being the operative word. Sittenfeld took the most notable events in Bush's life and embellished to create a compelling literary fiction with drama, tension, and, most of all, feeling. Her embellishment also drew a little from Laura Bush's mother-in-law, Barbara Bush. The combination works perfectly. The Laura Bush of Sittenfeld's imagining--a character she named Alice Blackwell--has Laura Bush's politeness and kindness (and, at times, blandness) and Barbara Bush's Democratic views alongside her husband's Republican ones. I always wondered how Barbara Bush could reconcile being married to someone with views so different from her own, and Sittenfeld offered a window into that, showing how it's hardly a straightforward reconciling.
Alice Blackwell comes from a humble WASP background, an only child who lives with her loving parents and cool, with-it grandma. She marries Charlie Blackwell, also from a WASP background but vastly more privileged. Sittenfeld depicted well the culture shock of marrying into such a family, and one of the best scenes involves a family gathering with the Blackwell clan, ebullient to an almost aggressive degree, and shallow. These are people living in a bubble with a black maid whom they consider family but who sees the reality and regards their wealth with quiet disdain.
Sittenfeld fashions characters in her stories with startling vividness. Everyone who plays any kind of significant role in American Wife leaps off the page so I could hear them and see them in all the unique ways that make them them. I could see their particular gait, the slightest expressions on their face, all body language. I could hear the amused twang in Charlie Blackwell's voice without Sittenfeld actually saying he has a twang. I could feel Alice Blackwell's generosity and warmth.
Sittenfeld doesn't just write stories. She writes with intention. She writes to entertain but to force contemplation--and she does it without being heavy-handed. She has a message, but she communicates that in a way that feels totally organic to her plot; it always makes sense. American Wife is more than 500 pages, and every page was needed to establish a solid foundation for the story's main takeaway. As is true of Prep, what Sittenfeld was trying to say with American Wife is undeniable.
This is the strongest fiction story about privilege that I've read--and, with a major plot point that's tear-jerking, one of the best meditations on tragedy and bereavement. On that point, Sittenfeld presented shockingly good insight into the stickiness of grief. Many authors compartmentalize it: A tragic something happens; the character mourns; and the story moves on with no reference to the tragedy, as if human beings are automatons who mourn for a set period and then are just fine. Sittenfeld understands that major grief cannot be encapsulated; in an instant, it leaves an indelible mark, informing future decisions and way of looking at the world.
American Wife is more than meets the eye. Despite its story line of a woman who goes on to become First Lady of the U.S., it's not overwhelmingly political. It's merely a story about the complexity of being human. Anyone who's lived, with all of life's ups and downs, will relate.
As she did with [b:Prep|9844|Prep|Curtis Sittenfeld|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1386925666l/9844._SY75_.jpg|2317177], Curtis Sittenfeld tackled privilege (in general) and, to a lesser extent, white privilege, in this sweeping novel. American Wife is based loosely on the life of Laura Bush--"loosely" being the operative word. Sittenfeld took the most notable events in Bush's life and embellished to create a compelling literary fiction with drama, tension, and, most of all, feeling. Her embellishment also drew a little from Laura Bush's mother-in-law, Barbara Bush. The combination works perfectly. The Laura Bush of Sittenfeld's imagining--a character she named Alice Blackwell--has Laura Bush's politeness and kindness (and, at times, blandness) and Barbara Bush's Democratic views alongside her husband's Republican ones. I always wondered how Barbara Bush could reconcile being married to someone with views so different from her own, and Sittenfeld offered a window into that, showing how it's hardly a straightforward reconciling.
Alice Blackwell comes from a humble WASP background, an only child who lives with her loving parents and cool, with-it grandma. She marries Charlie Blackwell, also from a WASP background but vastly more privileged. Sittenfeld depicted well the culture shock of marrying into such a family, and one of the best scenes involves a family gathering with the Blackwell clan, ebullient to an almost aggressive degree, and shallow. These are people living in a bubble with a black maid whom they consider family but who sees the reality and regards their wealth with quiet disdain.
Sittenfeld fashions characters in her stories with startling vividness. Everyone who plays any kind of significant role in American Wife leaps off the page so I could hear them and see them in all the unique ways that make them them. I could see their particular gait, the slightest expressions on their face, all body language. I could hear the amused twang in Charlie Blackwell's voice without Sittenfeld actually saying he has a twang. I could feel Alice Blackwell's generosity and warmth.
Sittenfeld doesn't just write stories. She writes with intention. She writes to entertain but to force contemplation--and she does it without being heavy-handed. She has a message, but she communicates that in a way that feels totally organic to her plot; it always makes sense. American Wife is more than 500 pages, and every page was needed to establish a solid foundation for the story's main takeaway. As is true of Prep, what Sittenfeld was trying to say with American Wife is undeniable.
This is the strongest fiction story about privilege that I've read--and, with a major plot point that's tear-jerking, one of the best meditations on tragedy and bereavement. On that point, Sittenfeld presented shockingly good insight into the stickiness of grief. Many authors compartmentalize it: A tragic something happens; the character mourns; and the story moves on with no reference to the tragedy, as if human beings are automatons who mourn for a set period and then are just fine. Sittenfeld understands that major grief cannot be encapsulated; in an instant, it leaves an indelible mark, informing future decisions and way of looking at the world.
American Wife is more than meets the eye. Despite its story line of a woman who goes on to become First Lady of the U.S., it's not overwhelmingly political. It's merely a story about the complexity of being human. Anyone who's lived, with all of life's ups and downs, will relate.