Book Review: The Widower’s Tale

Okay, folks, I have to do something I rarely do:  post a negative review.

I can’t help it.  I did my best with this book, I really did.  It had its merits, which I will list.  But oh, did it have its detriments.  I don’t know why I keep reading books by Julia Glass. I’ve read Three Junes (her first novel, for which she won a National Book Award) and The Whole World Over.  Her books have several things in common:  they’re very long.  They have fantastic characters.  And little to nothing actually happens to those characters. I know she’s super popular, so if you have a different opinion–by all means, I’d love to duke it out in the comments!  (The New York Times Book Review thought this book was brilliant, though they admit that “one might wish that The Widower’s Tale did more than just edge up to the nexus of serious issues … that drives its plot.” Um,  yes.  One might wish that.  In fact, I DO wish that.)

A Great Start…

The Widower’s Tale centers on Percival Darling, a lovable, cantankerous man who lives in an old house in Matlock, MA.  Widowed decades earlier when his young wife drowned in the pond in their backyard after a party, he’s made a life for himself with his grown daughters nearby.  He’s recently allowed a daycare center to renovate and start operating in the barn on his property, where his wife once held dance lessons. When Percy falls in love unexpectedly, everyone is thrilled for him.

Meanwhile, there’s several other third-person perspectives in the story:  his grandson Robert, a student at Harvard; Ira, a gay teacher at the nursery school on Percy’s property; and Celestino, an immigrant from Guatemala who tends to the landscaping needs of the rich residents of Matlock. The characters are well-drawn:  specific, ornery, original, realistic.

…But Good Characters and Themes Don’t Create Conflict

There’s lots of themes in the novel.  Robert’s best friend, Turo, gets wrapped up in a ‘freegan’ group that borders on eco-terrorism.  There’s lots of discussion of recent immigrant legislation, and we hear how Celestino ended up in the U.S. (a storyline that seems to skid to a halt in almost every possible sense). From Ira’s persepctive we get a touch of anti-gay sentiment, which ruffles feathers but doesn’t change much in the story.

Percy’s daughter, Trudy, is a doctor who specializes in treating breast cancer, a ‘theme’ that echoes across the stories of other women in the book. There’s lots of talk about wealth, the haves and have-nots, privilege, and education.

But very little happens.  There’s some interpersonal conflict–relationships stretching to their breaking points, old ghosts brought to the forefront, Percy’s other daughter in a mess of a family situation that she brought on herself.

And the Ending:  Oh, Geez

The summary of the book says that in one night, the characters make decisions that will change all their lives.

I could see it coming, and it was unsatisfying.

The denouement, in which all the storylines are wrapped up a little too neatly for such a long and winding book (I couldn’t tell on my Kindle; I knew it was long; it’s 480 pages!!), is nothing short of ridiculous.  I just didn’t believe any of the happy final decisions.  Sigh.

Better luck next time, right?  Is anyone reading anything fantastic right now?