Saturday, September 25, 2010

A Reliable Wife by Robert Goolrick



This book started a little slow for me, but by the end of the first chapter I was totally absorbed. A Reliable Wife is the story of two people, Ralph Truitt & Catherine Land, who are very different and yet so much the same. It is the story of how you so often find what you are looking for when you are looking for something else entirely; of how we rarely really know ourselves, let alone what we are looking for, or what we want.

Catherine Land is a woman who believes she is about beginnings and endings. She is looking for the ending to her story, with a feeling that there is no way that the middle could offer anything worthwhile. It's 1907 and she's in Chicago and answers a personal ad placed by Ralph Truitt, a wealthy businessman from Wisconsin, looking for a reliable wife. She replies that she is a simple and honest woman. Yet, she is anything but.

Ralph is looking for a reliable wife, but that's not really all he's looking for. He has a purpose in wanting a wife; a plan. Then again Catherine has a plan of her own; a plan to end up a wealthy widow. But, there's more to her story too than meets the eye.

Ralph has lost much in his life; the only woman he ever loved cheated on him and left him with a son that wasn't his. Eventually, he drove that son away out of hatred for the mother. Ralph wants a second chance, a second chance with his son, a second chance at life, a second chance at a legacy of his own. He figures if he has a new wife, his son will return. He sends Catherine to find his son and bring him back home.

The story twists and turns and even as I found the story going in the direction my mind wondered if it might go, I was still surprised that it went there, surprised at how it got there, surprised at just how much I felt for these people. Catherine and Ralph become more than just characters in a book, they become real people that you feel for and hope for and want happy endings for. As you read, you can't help but understand how each of them got to this point in their lives, and made the choices they made. You understand why they made these choices, and your heart breaks for them; at least mine did. I yearned for their happiness as much as they wanted it themselves.

Robert Goolrick is a powerful story teller and is amazing at character building. I'll be looking for his other books and hoping that this is something he does in each one.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Smashed: The Story of a Drunken Girlhood



This was a hard book to read, one that I couldn't read more than a chapter at a time in even though I found it constantly interesting. I think it was so hard because I could relate. Koren's story is one that can relate to any female, I think, and really makes you think about your life and the choices you've made.

I didn't start drinking at 14, like Koren, I was 16. I can still remember that first time and how "cool" it felt. That wasn't my very first drink... my first taste of alcohol was at 8 years old. My Grandma let me taste her beer. I hated the taste and still do. I've had my moments of binge drinking and I've had my moments where my drinking approached alcoholic status. Luckily, I've been able to internalize and realize when those moments occur and change my actions before they become a problem.

Koren relates her feelings towards her drinking, towards the reasons why she drinks, the holes she is trying to fill with drinking and her attempted breaks from drinking in such a way that you feel like you are right there with her. Your heart breaks for her and you feel every emotion. I know what it was like to be a teenage girl who didn't feel like she fit in and wanted to do whatever it took to feel comfortable in her own skin. This is the story that Koren relates.

At some point we each have to come to our own and figure out who we are and make a decision to accept that person. Koren was also able to come to that point, which is what allowed her to share her story. I hope that 7 years later she is still as sober as she was when she related her story.

I feel that this book, along with Prozac Nation (Movie Tie-In) and the movie, Thirteen should be required reading/viewing for all adolescent women. These are honest stories that approach what could be in a way that doesn't glamorize it. When I read or see these stories now I realize that "that could have been me" with only a few changes. These are stories that parents should read/ watch as well to help them help their children avoid falling in these same holes.