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I am utterly nonplussed that this book is out of print. This novel, this arresting and wholly authentic portrait of late twentieth-century family life, deserves an emblem that says: timeless, exemplary. Robert Boswell portrayed these contemporary characters originally and credibly, seducing the reader from the opening prologue to the masterful ending. There were no false notes, no manipulations of narrative or person. It germinates beautifully, organically.Angela and Stephen Landis are divorced,...
Deeply disturbing on one level, but, even after all these years, I remember it as a masterfully written work. Highly recommended.
Decided to read this after a 2003 viewing of Twelve Mile Road, a Tom Selleck movie for which the book is based on.
Did not like the characters at all! Not a fun read, very depressing family and am very glad that mine didn't grow up like that.
Second read. What a great writer Boswell is. His ear for dialogue is wonderful. I loved this book, was sad when it ended.
A long and painfully winding road. Boswell is an interesting writer who draws a scene as well as anyone and sometimes you get the feeling that each chapter is so well crafted and detailed it is its own short story. But, the story-telling itself is slow and the characters too malignant or indifferent. It was really hard to care about any of them. The ending is worth your patience, but be prepared for a frustrating ride to get there.
"That's a unique way to think about it," Stephen said. Henrietta disagreed. "There's not a unique bne in my body," she said.It was not a good poem, but it touched her that he had written it. Love seemed to have so little to do with accomplishment and so much to do with intention.Dulcie was sick of the way sex jutted out ahead and bloomed behind women's bodies, the first thing you noticed and the last thing you saw.
This book started out fantastic. Great characters. BUT, the ending was so terrible that I am mad I finished it. Total disappointment. Too bad, could have been great.
Boswell is a dialog master. The ways in which we listen, ignore, speak over and mishear are all amazingly revealed in this novel of relationships. A wonderful read.
2015
I was disappointed in this book. The reviews said it gave insight into the American family,however, it did not seem to end with any insights or observations. How many of us live on small Iowa farms? Most of the characters were still unsettled and unsatisfied with their lives at the end. I also found some of the actions of the young protagonist to be included for shock value. You never got a sense of why she had such strong feels about people or sex. I would not recommend this book.
Interesting story but not a satisfying ending.
A weird little story about a family (mom, dad, girl) and the other people in their lives. Daughter acts cray/unstable, hateful, but she gets better. Parents split, mom remarries, faces childrearing again at 40. Father tries to move on.Things happen, but very little gets resolved.
it was going along so well... but that daughter was truly a girl I wanted to strangle. and the farming descriptions... i love a good bucolic story as much as any other but I really got so distracted towards the end that anything would make me close the book. Like watching previews for shows that aired 20 years ago was more interesting. but the guy has an eye for relationships and writing and I appreciated it so much for that. I think it was more my fault than the authors. Just imagine what it wo...
Felt like the 1970s. Crazy teenagers trying to figure out how to be in the world, questions of integrity and ethics, lingering connections between ex-spouses, difficult parent-child relationships....Well-written and absorbing read.
Had a hard time working up any sympathy at all for Dulcie. Just go away please so that I can find out what happened to the rest of the characters!
This is a quiet story about the little events that shape the bigger picture of our lives. It is always something just out of our sight or reach, and as soon as we think we are starting to understand, the daily events, joys, troubles, catastrophes pull us away from ever really coming to see some greater purpose. We cling to each other or to fantasy or faith, but in the end we are only left with the work of the moment. This is a slow moving story about people who are not always very likable, but I...
Divorced couple with father a farmer in Iowa. Dulcie, their teenager, who deals with her wild side.
teenage girl behaves oddly, goes to live w dad in Iowa - good but blah ending
No plot to the book. Not a good book to read.
