Book Alert

I just finished Wit's End by Karen Joy Fowler.* It's a mystery, but it's more about being a reader, and at times a writer, than it is about solving a mystery. It is very much a reader's book. It's also about grief, which if you've been reading my blog for a while, it might make sense why I like the book on that front.

The summaries suggest that the book is about "what happens when your readers steal your characters" (to quote the cover of the edition I read) and that the mystery is about fanfic and fanatics. That is misleading. The fans and the mystery are subplots. The book is about Rima, the protagonist, who goes to live with her godmother (a famous mystery writer dogged by fans) after loosing everyone in her family (over many years, so it's not one big tragic event or anything). It is about her coming to terms with this new life that does not include all the people she loves and making sense of the relationships she had with her family now that those memories are all she really has left (including the parts that she doesn't like and would rather rewrite). Despite all of this, it's a fairly light read. It is not a plot-driven book (which is what most of the amazon criticisms are). But I thought it was lovely, and funny. It made me want to read more of her work.

Although I must say, it was fun reading the amazon reviews only to find examples of the people Fowler parodies. The review by the person who won't read anymore of the book because she disagrees with the author's politics is almost a replica of a fan letter in the book. It's funny.


*She wrote The Jane Austen Book Club, which is much better in its book form--the movie is too cheesy for words in a couple of scenes. The book has its problems, but is more enjoyable. Though, honestly, I enjoyed both even though I winced a few times during the movie.