Housekeeping - Marilynne Robinson (Audio)

I'd frequently heard about Marilynne Robinson, the celebrated American novelist. She looks pretty good on paper. "Housekeeping" was a finalist for the 1982 Pulitzer. "Gilead", her second book, did win the Pulitzer in 2005, and "Home" received the 2009 Orange Prize for Fiction. While some bloggers have sung her praises, though, I also heard some fightin' words like "could not finish" and "like watching paint dry". Frankly, it scared me a little. I am a self-proclaimed Pulitzer Idiot, after all. But when Tatjana Soli mentioned "Housekeeping" as one of her favorite reads, Books Babes and Bordeaux signed up to give it a try for our February meeting.

Synopsis: Young Ruth narrates the story of her and her sister's life in Fingerbone, Idaho, after being abandoned there by their mother. Raised for a time by their grandmother, then for a short time by their child-adverse great-aunts, then by their dreamy, transient Aunt Sylvie, the girls have never known stability. The girls have never had a male presence in their lives, never been made to attend school, never been required to keep their hair combed or their clothes tidy.

At the heart of Fingerbone lies the railroad bridge, from which their grandfather plunged to his death long ago. It is this railroad that also offers the prospect of transience, and perhaps a symbol of a way out. The theme of housekeeping also recurs throughout the story, not only the dusting and sweeping kind, but of spiritual housekeeping within one's family to keep it whole. In the case of Ruth and her sister, there is very little of either.

My thoughts: I think after reading this book, it has been officially determined that I need to stay away from prize-winners. I've read my share, and have very little luck with them. What is wrong with me? Am I not smart enough? People! Time magazine listed this book to be one of the 100 best English language novels between the years of 1923 and 2005! Yet all I wanted to do is stab myself in the eye with a sharp stick. If I hadn't been listening to an audio, which is akin to force-feeding, I would not have finished it.

Why you ask? The story is very subtle, with very little action within the plot. There is a flood, a fire, staying out all night on the lake and such, but everything happens very passively, as if being observed by an uninterested bystander. I'm not an adrenaline junkie, mind you. I can appreciate gentleness, but this particular brand of prose left me feeling dead.

I found the characters themselves to be two-dimensional. We were given little history of the players, and almost no emotion was expressed...no one cried, screamed or laughed. I was slightly annoyed with Sylvie, who came across as flighty, irresponsible and unprepared to care for children. Would it have been better for the girls to be cared for by a foster family, or was it healthier to stay with blood kin?

Robinson would occasionally wander off the path and deliver little mini-sermons on certain topics. I couldn't name one, as I didn't really understand what they were about. She also often used big fancy-sounding words that I didn't know, and that felt pretentious.

As I read through my words, they sound harsh and very unprofessional. It is just my expression of frustration that I was unable to "get" something so decorated and considered such a classic. What did I miss?

Thoughts from the members of Books, Babes and Bordeaux: Out of the nine or ten of us gathered to discuss this book, only two of us actually finished it. For the most part, the group looked at me with blank stares, asking me for my synopsis, analysis, insight, anything...and I did my best but you see what my opinion was. One member, who ALMOST finished it, said she didn't hate the book, and actually could relate some of the dysfunctional characters to people in her family. There was a kitchen full of gaping mouths when I announced that this book was an award finalist, and we sought to understand the appeal. Unanimously, we declared this read a hearty thumbs down.

Then we spent the rest of the meeting talking about popular music, pets, the disconnect between today's youth and "us", and we drank wine. And summoned hope for next month, when we discuss "The Weird Sisters".


A word about the audio production: Our narrator was Becket Royce, a new voice for me. This is definitely one book that could have used a lively personality at the microphone, but we didn't get it with Royce. Her voice was pleasant enough but had the effect of putting me to sleep.

2 out of 5 stars