Olympic swimmer Jesse Austin is seduced and consequently edged out for a gold medal by her Australian rival. From there, Anshaw intricately traces ...
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Oct 02, 2007
Jess
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I read this book before I moved to Portland, before my life really started. In my sheltered, plastic world, this novel stood out for its authenticity, its daring. I picked it up for very superficial reasons: I liked the cover, I'd been a competitive swimmer, and aquamarine is my birthstone. I nudged my paradigm ever so slightly. I realized that the path I was on was the not the only path I could take. In fact, looking back the reading of this novel may have been a watershed moment. I took the re
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Nov 02, 2010
Michael
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Michael Cunningham (who wrote the fabulous book THE HOURS) recommended this book. I can see how he liked the stance of a woman who is a champion swimmer and takes a dive into three different scenarios of how her life could have been. I suppose it's up to the reader to decide which is the TRUE story (if one wants to go that route). Alas, the book didn't flow as well as I would have liked. There were some memorable lines though:
"I don't want you to think I'm after your secrets. I'm not More...
"I don't want you to think I'm after your secrets. I'm not More...
Apr 11, 2011
Alice
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Ok, giving it four stars because despite not being bowled over by it, I kept wanting to go back to it until it was done, which I don't usually do as I am an easily distracted person.
The basic premise is this girl gets the silver medal for some swimming event in the Olympics, and right after it is the crucial time when the course of her life is decided. The author shows three (or four? maybe? I don't know; I'm not picking up the book) different paths that could've happened. It's really More...
The basic premise is this girl gets the silver medal for some swimming event in the Olympics, and right after it is the crucial time when the course of her life is decided. The author shows three (or four? maybe? I don't know; I'm not picking up the book) different paths that could've happened. It's really More...
May 01, 2008
Toby
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Like a giant Ready Whip can. Delicious.
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Apr 06, 2009
Grey
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I wouldn't call it timeless, but I would call it marvelous.
I did a little Reader's Advisory work for my friend A-, a very finicky fiction reader. In reading about this book, I was enamored with the premise: Three possible futures are woven for a woman who narrowly missed winning a swimming gold medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics. The tales -- as a small-town wife, a cosmopolitan lesbian returning home, and a single parent of troubled teenagers -- are wonderfully consistent and richly More...
I did a little Reader's Advisory work for my friend A-, a very finicky fiction reader. In reading about this book, I was enamored with the premise: Three possible futures are woven for a woman who narrowly missed winning a swimming gold medal in the 1968 Summer Olympics. The tales -- as a small-town wife, a cosmopolitan lesbian returning home, and a single parent of troubled teenagers -- are wonderfully consistent and richly More...
Jul 06, 2008
treehugger
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This book so deserves 5 stars! It was a super-fast read, because you just couldn't get enough of the story - you just HAD to know what kind of life she would live next, what kind of compromises she would make in the major decisions that make up a lifetime until she finally admitted her own truth to herself..
It's a story about an Olympic swimmer and the many paths (fleshed out) that her life could have taken after the fateful day in the Olympic pool when she competed for the gold meda More...
It's a story about an Olympic swimmer and the many paths (fleshed out) that her life could have taken after the fateful day in the Olympic pool when she competed for the gold meda More...
Aug 24, 2009
Mistinguette
rated it: 
Aquamarine is an ambitious literary take on a common daydream : What would my life life be like if I had...
By giving the reader three life narratives of a single character, an Olympic swimmer whose passion for a competitor cost her the gold medal, Anshaw raises a provocative query about how our perceptions of a single event can shape every aspect of the rest of our lives. At the root of each story are the same questions: What does it means to decide that we come in second, instead o More...
By giving the reader three life narratives of a single character, an Olympic swimmer whose passion for a competitor cost her the gold medal, Anshaw raises a provocative query about how our perceptions of a single event can shape every aspect of the rest of our lives. At the root of each story are the same questions: What does it means to decide that we come in second, instead o More...
Jun 27, 2010
Valarie
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The concept of presenting several alternate realities of a woman's life, based on the choices she makes early on, is interesting. Still, I was relatively unimpressed by Anshaw's writing. The first section had some really good imagery, but beyond that it seemed a little trite. And I didn't appreciate the insinuation that sexual orientation is essentially a choice.
May 11, 2009
Nell
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At some point in their lives, everyone wonders "What if?" about paths not taken. Aquamarine follows three very different but equally possible lives for Olympic swimming medalist Jesse Austin as she revisits the consequences of one critical act. I originally read this book in the early 1990s and enjoyed it even more this time.
Jan 07, 2009
This was a fun, thought-provoking book-- a quick read. It followed its main character through three possible lives. Her main preoccupation in this book (and also one that runs through Seven Moves, another one of hers that I read recently): there are lives that we choose that enable a more full version of ourselves and ones that we could choose that lead to a diminished version of ourselves. Each of the lives seemed to have its own delights, though, which is a solace.
Jun 23, 2008
Danielle
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Loved it!! This book was about something I think about all the time - how decisions in your early adulthood can shape the rest of your life. This book starts out with a brief glimpse into Jesse's life as an 18 year old who has just won an Olympic medal for swimming. The rest of the book is divided into thirds. Each one is a snapshot of Jesse's life as a 39 year old and each is an equally feasible, completely different way her life could have turned out (lesbian living in New York, adulterous
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Nov 11, 2010
Caitlin
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I hate that I had to give this novel only four stars, but the last section was weaker than the two previous alternate realities and the "conclusion" was completely unnecessary. However, beautiful beautiful book, different settings and relationships complicated the recurring characters in an innovative way. I will read this book again in the future and I don't do that very often. (I'll just tear out the last three pages.)
Apr 03, 2009
Bogdina
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Man, she makes heterosexuality totally unappealing in this book. I'm pretty biased myself so it didn't bother me...
I wouldn't necessarily read it a second time but it was enjoyable.
I wouldn't necessarily read it a second time but it was enjoyable.
Dec 06, 2008
I like the voice but the writing seems a little thin in that the events are more reported than made real. The novel doesn't cut deep as experience, but it's enjoyable reading.
Feb 11, 2009
Sue
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An interesting format, it gives the same character 3 separate lives, based on how she handled an Olympic swim event. Good writing, and interesting characters.
Apr 15, 2010
Leslie
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Story of how a life can go in different directions from one starting point. Three stories. Enjoyed the concept and the writing.
Jun 23, 2010
Karen
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Starts with girl coming in second in swimming in 1968 Olympics. Story is 3 possible outcomes to her life.
Jan 25, 2009
Suade
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I'm giving this 3.5 stars because I felt the writing itself good have had a bit more gusto, even though that's not really the point of this book. I expected this book to be a bit more involved, or rather, in depth but it still was good. It made me think about choices we have in our lives about big (and small) decisions we make (or don't), and how those decisions or indecisions can lead us down different paths.
Jul 09, 2008
Heather
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I would rate this book between three to four stars, if I could. It should definitely be placed in some kind of in-between. Some of the chapters take place at the same time as others and with the same characters, but the scenarios are different. They are contingent upon choices the main character makes in her youth. It's enjoyable to read these "what-if" situations, especially since the writing's engaging and the main character has a bit of a smart mouth.
Jul 24, 2008
Cherie
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A Really excellent novel with a very unique method--the novel starts out with Jesse Austin in the Olympics as a 100 meter swimmer when she is 17 years old; then it flashes forward to three separate sections of three different lives she could have taken. I love it b/c by the end, I really love the characters, b/c I've seen them in a variety of perspectives (esp. Jesse, William and I love Hallie!). I highly recommend this wonderfully written novel.
Jan 06, 2009
Red
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this book was pretty interesting. a little heavy-handed with the colors and the metaphors (and with the spotlighting of the plot features). what I really appreciated was the thoughtfulness - the book imagines three different life paths for one woman, and I think its strength was in fully realizing each of these three possibilities. there were also a few brilliantly funny deadpan lines in the book that really cut to the quick.
Apr 21, 2011
i like the idea, but can't really get into the 2nd version of what "might have happened" because there is too much lesbian sex for my liking. i'm certainly not homophobic; i'm just not interested in reading that type of thing.
Sep 16, 2007
Kristine
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If you have ever wondered what your life would be like if you made a different choice in your past, or if you've seen the movie, "The Sliding Door" and you liked it, read this book. Author Carol Anshaw won the Carl Sandburg Award for fiction for this book -- and she earned it. So read it -- and if you regret an unlived life, live it! Enjoy.
Jun 08, 2011
Diana
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It was interesting enough to keep reading, but I guess not enough out of reality for me to really love it. The book shows us three vignettes of how Jesse's life could have been after coming in second at the 1968 Olympics. More of a character study than a story, but interesting to read.
Sep 02, 2008
Andy
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You definitely don't have to be gay to enjoy this book. The main character won a silver medal in swimming as a teenager, and the rest of the book is devoted to three possible futures.
Mar 15, 2008
David
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One of my favorites to reread on occasion- three very different, separate stories/paths that the central characters life could have taken... a quick read, and a story that stays with you.
Mar 14, 2008
Mily
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Here's another book I've read several times.
The entire premise appeals to me.
How our lives would be different if we chose a different path at any given moment in time.
The entire premise appeals to me.
How our lives would be different if we chose a different path at any given moment in time.
May 05, 2008
Louis
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Technically, this book is competent. But, who cares. The overall trick that drives this narrative is lame.
