by Richard Russo
As I got close to the end of this book, I knew that once I was done, I would miss it. Part of me wanted to slow down, but mostly I wanted to keep going. I ended up getting the Kindle version from my library's e-collection and supplementing my listening with a whole lot of reading. I enjoyed the ...
First, I must say that I am a Russo fan. I like his nuance, I love his characters, and I think his prose runs from heartbreakingly acute observations of human folly to laugh out loud entertainment.In this novel, Russo follows the life of Lucy Lynch who never leaves the small town of Thomaston NY. ...
I liked the book but there were some times when it felt a bit disjointed because of interchanging time lines and abrupt locale changes. I would lose track of which character I was reading about and what some of the references meant. It is 500+ pages and I did not find it a quick read but certain une...
It's possible that as a Midwesterner of somewhat Scandinavian extraction, I have an overly developed sensitivity to the language of self deprecation. I consider myself enthusiastic amateur in the practice of self-effacement; my Grandma Dory can both insult and vanish into false timidity in the same ...
Not as good as Empire Falls, but still a good quality offering from Russo. Has a few moments that are absolutely magic, and a few that fall short. It's tough to follow up a Pulitzer Prize winning novel, although this one is very readable, I expect more from Russo.
Nothing about different cultures, and this was why I originally chose to read the book! This book is primarily about human relationships, what different individuals are looking for in life and how that changes or doesn't change as we get older. So this book is OK, maybe it should even be given three...
This is one of those stories that grows on you more and more as you get deeper into the lives and motivations of the characters. The primary narrator, Louis Lynch, decides at the age of 60 to write the story of his childhood in upstate New York as the only child of a hopelessly optimistic father an...
I've been a fan of Russo's from way back, having particularly dug _The Risk Pool_. On the one hand I've always had a homeboy's appreciation for the way he captures upstate NY's rusted-town class divisions and social dynamics. (The guy has a brilliant ear for the very funny meanness between friends...
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