Evening

Rating:
Summary: Some Won't Get It
Review: I read through the review's of other readers and just felt the need to comment. Some didn't "get" Susan Minot's style. It's not just a little bit like James Joyce,(no slouch)and it seemed very correct when trying to capture the thoughts and feelings of a woman in her final dance with life and death -- not to mention morphine. I had no trouble with it, although it required a bit of "letting go"....which I enjoyed.

I do think that anyone who has closely witnessed a loved one endure the lonely passing of life to cancer, might be strongly affected, as I was, by this book. I saw that another reader was annoyed by the seemingly "perfect" life had by Ann. Perfect? Somehow that escaped me. Besides, the point was that it comes down to this...it ends for all of us. We are alone, truly, as we die. While others hover around us, what is left is only a reflection of the life we lived and the choices we made. No one really *knew* Ann,except Ann,although many people had loved her. She had regrets that haunted her,and lots of "what if's" to deal with as she "conversed" with Harris, the one it all boiled back down to. It tugged at my heart deeply, and I look forward to anything else Susan Minot might write.

Rating:
Summary: left waiting
Review: I loved Minot's style and felt that she conveyed the conflict between conscious/subconscious or mind/heart very well. I grew attached to each of her characters but was left waiting for more closure by the end of the book. Minot did not clarify the answers to the questions she asked at the opening: Do moments last forever? Does the love matter? It did not seem that the author meant to leave problems unresolved, but simply lost the energy to finish what she started. The issues of the sisters and brother, with their mother, each other, and their own personal lives, had no conclusion. I was left wondering if Minot wanted to reader to believe that endless cycles exist in human nature, and this was reflected in Ann's problems continued on with her children. What was the connection between Ann and Constance? Why did Maria write Ann? Well written and a basically enjoyable plot line, QUICK READ, but please explain more!

Rating:
Summary: too much left unexplained?
Review: I liked the book but some plots threads seemed awfully thin and left hanging. For instance who was the drunk guy who showed up to pay his respects early in the book who leaves (a heart?) in a bag. What was that all about? Call me unimaginative, but I would also liked the plot more if it had clarified a bit more why the penultimate Harris did not make an appearance at the death bed. Don't get me wrong, I loved the kaleidoscope word imagery and the way the it was interlaced with the 2 plots, but I could have done with a bit more solid info and less filling in of the blanks.

Rating:
Summary: An author is born
Review: I mostly remembered Minot's previous short stories, and also the delicate screenplay she wrote for Bertolucci's underrated STEALING BEAUTY. This latest book of hers is a true novel, with an original construction which seems to me quite a daring challenge to common love stories female readers. But my feeling is that all male readers should really try to get into it, and right to the very last page ! The picture many of them will recognize in the mirror is much more subtle than one may think at first sight. A lesson of life as well as a lesson of smart writing.

Rating:
Summary: worth reading
Review: I liked this book. It was a quick read, which is refreshing, because most of the books I pick up are huge and, at times, overwhelming. This book was a snapshot of a life. The author played with words and sounds in the text, in a way that was different and that truly created a mood. At times it was almost like poetry. If you're looking for a perfect love story, don't read this. The characters are full of flaws, and you may even be disenchanted at times. I was, and it verged on disappointment, but it was real and, for the most part, they remained sympathetic. What this story does is make you think about your life and forces you to think about choices you make. Life should not be about regret.

Rating:
Summary: I actually found it interesting....
Review: i do have to say that i actually enjoyed this book. it was perfectly written and was beautiful. her life was not all that perfect and to tell you the truth i know several friends who have those lifetstyles so it isn't that far from the ordinary...

Rating:
Summary: Where's Katherine Anne Porter when you need her?
Review: I disagree with the previous reviewer. I *did* get EVENING, and I am not a fan of Maeve Binchy. I just didn't happen to *like* EVENING.

First of all, why is it that lately every book I read reminds me of another, much better story? EVENING is a reworking of the stream-of-consciousness classic we all had to read in high school--Katherine Anne Porter's THE JILTING OF GRANNY WEATHERALL. Don't believe me? Want to argue? JILTING is a short story; it won't take you fifteen minutes to read. Go get your old English textbook and give it a whirl. See if I don't at least make a good point.

Also, EVENING's main character just didn't seem real to me. I mean, how perfect can her life be? She had three rich, adoring husbands, plus a mad, passionate, youthful love affair. She was beautiful and talented and never had to work. She had a personal nurse to keep her as comfortable as possible while on her deathbed and daughters who dropped everything to come sit by her side while she ailed.

I think a line in the book summed it up for me: "They ALL took her to Venice."

Well, my, my. How convenient for you, that all your filthy rich, handsome, worshipful lovers whisked you off to Venice. Blah blah blah. With apologies to Moon Unit Zappa: Gag me with a spoon.

Forgive me if I don't feel a whole lot of sympathy or compassion for the main character, emotions I know the author was aiming to arouse in her readers. But I wish I could be so lucky to have such memories while dying of cancer. And to have so much money that my dear two-dimensional children would never have to suffer the agony of caring for me.

The daughters didn't seem to have too much to do with the story. Why bother creating them if you're not going to develop their characters AT ALL, Ms. Minot?

*SIGH*

Maybe I'm being too harsh. EVENING is a decent book, and probably not as bad as I made it out to be. Go ahead and read it. But read THE JILTING OF GRANNY WEATHERALL, too, please. Do that for yourself.

Rating:
Summary: Contrived and Unoriginal
Review: I expected great things from this novel from reading the quotes on the cover from reviews such as the NYT, etc. This is exactly the type of literature I enjoy greatly. However, despite glowing reviews, I could barely get through this book and did not enjoy most of it, although it had its moments. It was rather boring, affected and contrived; I never felt the main characters were very realistic nor did they engage me in any way. In short, I just didn't care about this woman nor her life or thoughts, nor could I comprehend or empathize with her undying love for the main male character as there was no motivation for it, and very little context, other than an immature one-night stand. It is not credible that this person and event were so important in her life and that event is, unfortunately, the focus of the book. The most surprising part to me was that the tragic love affair that haunts this woman for life turns out to have one of the most hackneyed, cliche-ridden plots you can imagine (I won't reveal it in case a reader wants a surprise, but it's the caliber of a daytime soap opera). The writing style was fine, however; Ms. Minot is a talented writer. I was not familiar with this author's work and selected this book solely on the book jacket, review quotes, and the general subject and genre; as I said, normally I like this type of literature a lot, so that isn't the problem. I will agree with the comment someone else wrote, which is exactly the problem -- those readers who give it only a couple stars just don't get it. That's exactly right. In short, it is worth a try if you get it free or at the library, but I would not spend any money on this book nor would I buy it as a gift for someone who hasn't requested it, as I think its interest to any particular reader is too unpredictable.

Rating:
Summary: haunting
Review: I have to agree with the previous reviewer....those who gave this novel only a few stars just didn't get it! I was actually reading a Maeve Binchy and found the writing so uninteresting that I picked up Evening instead! I found myself unable to sleep last night after finishing, reflecting on my own past, and future. Risky writing, I applaud those who take the dare to make this a bestseller.

Rating:
Summary: Breathtaking combo of love, loss and longing...a gem
Review: I just finished this stunner of a novel...I'd read Minot before, but her past works don't quite compare with this. My mother, like the narrator, recently died of cancer and had a similiar "love lost" experience in her 20s. I felt like this book was describing parts of my mother, or any woman for that matter, that others usually can't see. When Ann Lord remembered her affair with Harris Arden, I got goosebumps; when she drifts in and out of coherence on her deathbed, it smacked of an experience I"ve just gone through. But somehow, this book is uplifting, not depressing. The use of Faulknerian stream-of-consciousness is deft, and there's just enough of it. The shifts in time and place are brilliant. These people who give this book only a couple of stars just don't get it...maybe they need to stick with Maeve Binchy!