Wednesday, December 18, 2013

Review: Someone : A Novel by Alice McDermott

Here's another definite candidate for consideration for jumping to the next level of the Maine Readers Choice list: Someone, A Novel, by Alice McDermott.  Suffice it to say, this lady can take an absolutely ordinary woman, put her in a dull and lackluster setting, throw in a handful of nondescript characters and spin pure gold as the story of her life. Somewhat slow starting, but at only 231 pages, definitely worth the time spent. It's absolutely mesmerizing, and difficult to review.  The whole time I was reading it, I kept waiting for something exciting to happen, and then suddenly had that "AHA" moment when I realized that the excitement comes from the blessings of the ordinary.  McDermott certainly deserved a National Book award for this one. Short, sparse, spectacular. Would make a great christmas present.

Title: Someone: A Novel
Awards: Longlist for National Book Award 2013
Author: Alice McDermott
Publisher: Farrar, Straus and Giroux (2013), Edition: First Edition, Hardcover, 240 pages
Genre: literary fiction
Subject: one woman's life
Setting: Brooklyn
Source: Review copy from the publisher
Why did I read this book now? It's was on the long list for the Maine Reader's Choice Award.
Posted by Tina at 12:30 AM

2 comments:

  1. (Diane) Bibliophile By the SeaDecember 18, 2013 at 7:17 AM

    I hope to read this one soon -- I think I'd love it.

    ReplyDelete
  2. UnknownDecember 18, 2013 at 12:35 PM

    I so agree! I likened it to an Irish fisherman's sweater with each unique pattern uniting to make a work of art. It is a fabulous read.

    ReplyDelete

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