Gossamerchild reviewed Private life by Jane Smiley
Review of 'Private life' on 'Storygraph'
3 stars
Again, this is probably one I would've given a 3.5 stars. I'm getting a little tired of these measly three...
Anyway, this book was...sort of odd. Very slow paced, character-driven novel about one women in the late 19th century and the bigger-than-life man she married. My biggest beef with the story was that I never really got a feel for the woman until the last quarter of the book. Granted, that was probably the point. The story was really about Margaret and Andrew's marriage, and all the restrictions placed on her by the culture, family expectations, and even what she let herself fall victim to. The husband, Andrew, is never abusive, but his personality dominates everything, including the story itself. And it ends so abruptly. Really extraordinary writing, though. Not sure I really liked the characters.