Select language, opens an overlay

Comment

Oct 01, 2014JCLGreggW rated this title 3.5 out of 5 stars
Take a moment and read the first words of the novel: "my father’s wife died. My mother said we should drive down to his place and see what might be in it for us." It's simple, precise, and beautifully sets up the novel, a coming-of-age story of two precocious half-sisters in 1940s Ohio - one older, talented, and beautiful, the younger one quieter and more observant. They travel from Ohio to Hollywood to New York City, trying to create a family for themselves by any means necessary, brashly reinventing themselves as they go. I enjoyed the characters - Bloom tells the story through the younger sister's eyes as well as letters from other characters - and also the immersive language and mid-century American setting, which will make this novel an instant book-club classic.