Post by Charlynn on Dec 27, 2010 20:05:49 GMT -5
Body Surfing
Imagine being a twenty-nine year old woman, one divorced and then once widowed. It's not a very common occurrence, but it is the main character of this book - Sydney's reality. This is the stage of her life in which she finds herself when she goes to work for the Edwards family. Ostensibly to tutor their teenage daughter, Julie, so that she can pass and do well on her upcoming SAT's, Sydney goes to stay with the Edwards at their beach house in New Hampshire. There, she body surfs, meets the Edwards' two sons Ben and Jeff, and begins to live again. As she opens Julie's eyes to her future, to love, Sydney once more opens her own heart and falls in love with Jeff. But then, on the night of her wedding, she learns an hideous truth, sending her life into yet another downward spiral.
The interesting thing about this book is, just as Sydney is lied to, so are we as readers. I was none the wiser towards the truth than she was, and, though, in the back of mind, I suspected that something might be wrong, I never thought it was what was eventually revealed. It was heartbreaking and devastating, though my pain, of course, was minor compared to what the character experienced.
At the same time, Julie runs away from home, the Edwards brothers get into a fight and never find their way out of it, Sydney forms a close relationship with her future father-in-law, and Mrs. Edwards never once thaws towards her employee/future daughter-in-law. While Sydney is undoubtedly the main character, as a whole, this book is a family drama, exploring all the various relationships one finds present in a nuclear family, making it extremely relatable. Also, due to the fact that it is written in the present tense, there is a sense of 'now' to the story, of the audience, as readers, being present. Though somewhat unconventional, it makes the story stand out.
My only complaint about Body Surfing has to deal with the ending. The characters were extremely compelling - all rich and real, and the plot was character driven, my favorite. However, with this praise being said, the ending was abrupt. Though poignant and a fitting close, I also felt as though the story was left unfinished, but perhaps that was the point. Because this book was more of a character study, maybe it was just a brief glimpse into these people's lives and, once it was over, we were to realize that they would continue... even if the novel didn't. Whether this was the case or not, though, I wouldn't have complained if the author - Anita Shreve - would have offered her readers just a little bit more to wrap the tale up.
Imagine being a twenty-nine year old woman, one divorced and then once widowed. It's not a very common occurrence, but it is the main character of this book - Sydney's reality. This is the stage of her life in which she finds herself when she goes to work for the Edwards family. Ostensibly to tutor their teenage daughter, Julie, so that she can pass and do well on her upcoming SAT's, Sydney goes to stay with the Edwards at their beach house in New Hampshire. There, she body surfs, meets the Edwards' two sons Ben and Jeff, and begins to live again. As she opens Julie's eyes to her future, to love, Sydney once more opens her own heart and falls in love with Jeff. But then, on the night of her wedding, she learns an hideous truth, sending her life into yet another downward spiral.
The interesting thing about this book is, just as Sydney is lied to, so are we as readers. I was none the wiser towards the truth than she was, and, though, in the back of mind, I suspected that something might be wrong, I never thought it was what was eventually revealed. It was heartbreaking and devastating, though my pain, of course, was minor compared to what the character experienced.
At the same time, Julie runs away from home, the Edwards brothers get into a fight and never find their way out of it, Sydney forms a close relationship with her future father-in-law, and Mrs. Edwards never once thaws towards her employee/future daughter-in-law. While Sydney is undoubtedly the main character, as a whole, this book is a family drama, exploring all the various relationships one finds present in a nuclear family, making it extremely relatable. Also, due to the fact that it is written in the present tense, there is a sense of 'now' to the story, of the audience, as readers, being present. Though somewhat unconventional, it makes the story stand out.
My only complaint about Body Surfing has to deal with the ending. The characters were extremely compelling - all rich and real, and the plot was character driven, my favorite. However, with this praise being said, the ending was abrupt. Though poignant and a fitting close, I also felt as though the story was left unfinished, but perhaps that was the point. Because this book was more of a character study, maybe it was just a brief glimpse into these people's lives and, once it was over, we were to realize that they would continue... even if the novel didn't. Whether this was the case or not, though, I wouldn't have complained if the author - Anita Shreve - would have offered her readers just a little bit more to wrap the tale up.