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Loading... Elegies for the Brokenheartedby Christie Hodgen
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Sign up for LibraryThing to find out whether you'll like this book. No current Talk conversations about this book. Original, tight, smart, funny, and achingly insightful. ( ) OK, this is a depressing book. It tells the stories of five people who were known by the narrator and who died younger than they might have been expected. They all failed to reach their potential by a long way. The reasons for their failures are complex, and Hodgen is very good at conveying that complexity without giving us all the details. All her characters were very real to me, even the most bizarre. The book made me feel sad for the people she wrote about, but also for people I know and for people who I know must exist in my society but whom I don't meet in my daily life. On the strength of this book and "Hello I must be Going", Hodgen has rocketed into my favourites list. You can often tell a lot about someone by what they think of others. In Christie Hodgen's novel, there are five elegies written by Mary Murphy about five people who had an influence on her life. The prose is powerful and compelling, as more is revealed about Mary's own difficult life. This book will knock your proverbial socks off! no reviews | add a review
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"Who are the people you'll never forget? For Mary Murphy, there are five: A skirt-chasing, car-racing uncle with whiskey breath and a three-day beard. A "walking joke, a sitting duck, a fish in a barrel" named Elwood LePoer. A dirt-poor college roommate who conceals an unbearable secret. A failed piano prodigy lost in middle age. A beautiful mother haunted by her once-great aspirations.In five quirky elegies to lost friends and relatives, Mary tells us the story of her life. We begin with a restless childhood spent following her mother between multiple homes and husbands. Then comes the disappearance of Mary's rebellious and beloved sister, Malinda. By the time Mary leaves for college, she has no one to write home to, and we follow along on her difficult search for purpose. From a series of miserable jobs to her "reborn" mother's deathbed, Mary finds hope in the most surprising places. With a rhythmically unique voice and pitch-perfect wry humor, Christie Hodgen spins an unconventional and moving story about identity, belonging, and family" --Cover, p. 2. No library descriptions found. |
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Google Books — Loading... GenresMelvil Decimal System (DDC)813.6Literature English (North America) American fiction 21st CenturyLC ClassificationRatingAverage:
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