Jones, Tayari. An American Marriage. Chapel Hill: Algonquin 2018. Print.
First Sentences:
There are two kinds of people in the world, those who leave home, and those who don't.
I'm a proud member of the first category.
Description:
Wow, wow, and yet again WOW!
It's been way too long since I've read a book that made me want to drop everything to sit and read for hours on end. Great writing, interesting story, and above all realistic, complex characters are the rewards of Tayari Jones' fourth novel, the brilliant An American Marriage. And boy, what a ride.
The story revolves around Celestial and Roy, two African-American young marrieds, one wealthy and one poor but on the rise financially. They are living in Atlanta reveling in their loving if challenging new relationship. Their future looks bright, with talk of careers and children.
There are other important characters from parents to childhood friends who set examples of both good and poor relationships. They freely give opinions to Roy and Celestial on what constitutes appropriate actions for a couple or a "real man." We readers shift sympathies as we understand more about the lives of these people and the influences they have on Roy and Celestial.
Okay, that's it. Can't give away any more. It's a complex, heartbreaking, lovely, honest, and unpredictable story. It is strongly told in chapters narrated by different characters, giving their own unique perspectives to the events. Readers get inside the heads of Roy, Celestial, and others so intimately that we cannot help but share their struggles and the consequences of their decisions.
And then there is Jones' writing: always clear, strong, and tersely descriptive. Each character is intimately portrayed and given a unique voice to narrate their individual chapters, reveal their dreams, and express their fears and disappointments. These characters are definitely memorable
Nan, Stewart. The Odds: A Love Story
There are two kinds of people in the world, those who leave home, and those who don't.
I'm a proud member of the first category.
Description:
Wow, wow, and yet again WOW!
It's been way too long since I've read a book that made me want to drop everything to sit and read for hours on end. Great writing, interesting story, and above all realistic, complex characters are the rewards of Tayari Jones' fourth novel, the brilliant An American Marriage. And boy, what a ride.
The story revolves around Celestial and Roy, two African-American young marrieds, one wealthy and one poor but on the rise financially. They are living in Atlanta reveling in their loving if challenging new relationship. Their future looks bright, with talk of careers and children.
It was a wonderful feeling to be grown and yet young. To be married but not settled. To be tied down yet free.But their world is abruptly shattered when Roy is wrongly convicted of a crime and sent to prison for twelve years. .After several years, both Roy and Celestial begin to change and accept their new lives apart from each other.
When something happens that eclipses the imaginable, it changes a person. It's like the difference between a raw egg and a scrambled egg. It's the same thing, but it's not the same way at all....I look in the mirror and I know it's me, but I can't quite recognize myself.But when Roy is exonerated and released early from incarceration, he hopes to resume their married lives together. But both he and Celestial are faced with the realities of personal worlds that have changed. Their current lives are not necessarily better or worse, but definitely changed. They cannot go back to what was reality five years ago, but are uncertain about what the future might bring.
There are other important characters from parents to childhood friends who set examples of both good and poor relationships. They freely give opinions to Roy and Celestial on what constitutes appropriate actions for a couple or a "real man." We readers shift sympathies as we understand more about the lives of these people and the influences they have on Roy and Celestial.
Okay, that's it. Can't give away any more. It's a complex, heartbreaking, lovely, honest, and unpredictable story. It is strongly told in chapters narrated by different characters, giving their own unique perspectives to the events. Readers get inside the heads of Roy, Celestial, and others so intimately that we cannot help but share their struggles and the consequences of their decisions.
And then there is Jones' writing: always clear, strong, and tersely descriptive. Each character is intimately portrayed and given a unique voice to narrate their individual chapters, reveal their dreams, and express their fears and disappointments. These characters are definitely memorable
[Celestial] is a scotch-and-Marlboros alto. Even when she was a little girl, her voice was like the middle of the night. When she gives a song, it isn't entertaining; rather, it sounds like she is telling secrets that are not hers to reveal.I give An American Marriage highest marks. An excellent read in every way.
____________________
If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
If this book interests you, be sure to check out:
Nan, Stewart. The Odds: A Love Story
A middle age couple, at a crossroad in their marriage, want to decide whether to stay together or separate. They decide to have their fate decided by a game of dice, cashing in all their financial assets to bet on one game, with the outcome to determine their fate to remain together or move apart. Brilliantly narrated separately by both persons, letting readers change sympathies for the characters as new secrets are revealed en route to Canada and the gaming table. (previously reviewed here)
A mentally-challenged white woman and deaf African-American man escape from the School for the Incurable and Feebleminded with their newborn infant and hide in a farmhouse, helped by its owner, Martha. When they are caught by authorities, Homan escapes but Lynnie whispers to Martha, "Hide her." What transpires is the journey of Homan and Lynnie to try to be be reunited with each other and their child. (previously reviewed here)
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