(Borrowed from the NYPL, 40th St.) I took out Ann Beattie's long short story or short novella when I got bored with Peter Bogdanovich's endless interviews with legendary directors. Slightly over 100 small pages, I read it in a few hours. The story concerns writer Jane and her relationships with men--a boyfriend, a husband and her father. The much older husband is a somewhat shadowy figure we don't get to know very well. Also, he treats Jane badly, not telling her he's married when they first get together. She treats him like a mentor, recording some ridiculous life advice he dispenses, like always wear raincoats made in England and when you have wine call it a "drink" or something like that. I guess this is meant to be funny. There are the usual Ann Beattie details which give life to the characters. The father's housemate--are they gay???--is obsessed with I Love Lucy. A neighbor who is gay plays with an Etch-a-Sketch. Beattie does capture the atmosphere of NYC in the 1980s and a young woman dealing with heartbreak and complicated relationships.
No comments:
Post a Comment