false http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1170900200m/77477.jpg 77477 19 The plot of Anna Quindlen's novel <I>Blessings</I> is constructed on the same model as <I>E.T.</I>: adorable orphaned creature is found by unlikely caregiver who against his or her better judgment falls in love with the little beast, while all the while, the authorities loom in the background, threatening to take the foundling away. In Quindlen's book, however, the foundling in question isn't an alien, but a squalling baby left at Blessings, a vast estate owned by an ancient, crabby matriarch named Lydia Blessing. By a fluke, the baby's parents abandon her by the garage rather than at the front door, and so she is discovered by Skip Cuddy, Lydia Blessing's newly hired handyman, who happens to be an ex-con. The plot proceeds from there in fairly <I>E.T.</I>-like fashion, minus the Reese's Pieces and flying bicycles. Skip, Lydia, and the baby they name Faith form a surprisingly loving and sustaining, albeit temporary, family unit.<p> Quindlen wrings a remarkable amount of pathos from this somewhat simple setup. One of her strengths as a writer is the quietness she brings to her story; family secrets of paternity and lost love are buried deep in the narrative, hidden in descriptive paragraphs where they subtly zing us with their news. Her ear is good, too: we believe Skip and his bad-boy friends when they're shooting the breeze. Best of all is her flair for observation. The book wouldn't work at all if she couldn't make us feel Skip and Lydia's amazement at the small joys of a baby ("The deep pleat in the fat at her elbow made her arms look muscled"). Here is a book that lives up to its title. <I>--Claire Dederer</I> 1121880 2002 Blessings total:2582|5:284|4:855|3:1068|2:313|1:62| 2582 8732 3247 328 5 4 false false Wed Aug 13 13:58:37 -0700 2008 Sat Aug 23 17:33:03 -0700 2008 more...]]> 3 2 false false Sun May 01 00:00:00 -0700 2005 Sat Jan 17 14:35:37 -0800 2009 Sat Jan 17 14:36:14 -0800 2009 2 2 false false Mon Feb 18 00:00:00 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 23 11:29:15 -0800 2008 Sat Feb 23 11:33:48 -0800 2008 more...]]> 4 0 false false Wed Oct 21 13:36:37 -0700 2009 Wed Oct 21 13:36:47 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false false Fri Mar 13 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 12 06:41:29 -0700 2009 Fri Mar 13 23:03:01 -0700 2009 more...]]> 4 1 false false Fri Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Jun 20 12:48:55 -0700 2007 Wed Jul 04 10:56:11 -0700 2007 more...]]> 5 0 false false Fri Apr 10 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Thu Mar 26 19:01:29 -0700 2009 Fri Apr 10 18:35:46 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 2 0 false false Wed Jul 08 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 01 07:53:47 -0700 2009 Wed Jul 08 09:23:46 -0700 2009 * * *
Now,...more...]]> 3 1 false false Sat Sep 01 00:00:00 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 05 18:04:29 -0700 2007 Wed Sep 12 18:32:03 -0700 2007 5 1 false false Tue Jul 28 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 27 14:04:34 -0700 2009 Tue Jul 28 07:52:19 -0700 2009 more...]]> 5 1 false false Mon Aug 04 10:16:25 -0700 2008 Mon Aug 04 10:19:17 -0700 2008 5 0 false false Fri Jun 20 00:00:00 -0700 2003 Tue Aug 11 07:13:10 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 11 07:13:51 -0700 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Thu Oct 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 05 18:15:55 -0700 2009 Mon Oct 05 18:19:49 -0700 2009
And yet, the young man is too perfect; the old lady too much the "...more...]]> 3 0 false false Thu Sep 03 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Sun Aug 30 01:26:21 -0700 2009 Thu Sep 03 23:22:18 -0700 2009
Short. Predictable.

What can I say? I needed a 'Q' author for my alphabet challenge?

The WAY Quindlen bounced back and forth from past to present was really difficult to follow -- as a reader, I needed some help here...it was distracting. I foun...more...]]> 3 0 false false Wed Mar 18 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Mar 17 05:04:10 -0700 2009 Wed Mar 18 19:12:10 -0700 2009
I was really surprised by how much I liked it. I enjoyed the unlikely friendships that formed. I also loved how as your view of Lydia Blessing expanded, so did your opinio...more...]]> 4 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 04 05:36:42 -0700 2009 Tue Aug 04 05:37:19 -0700 2009 1 more...]]> 3 0 false false Mon Jun 01 00:00:00 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 27 21:43:14 -0700 2009 Mon Jul 27 21:45:33 -0700 2009 more...]]> 3 0 false true Mon Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2007 Sat Feb 21 05:31:21 -0800 2009 Sat Feb 21 05:35:37 -0800 2009 more...]]> 4 0 false false Thu Jan 01 00:00:00 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 04 18:25:15 -0800 2009 Sun Jan 04 18:32:26 -0800 2009 more...]]> 2 0 false false Tue Jul 01 00:00:00 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 14:36:15 -0700 2008 Mon Jul 21 14:45:43 -0700 2008 more...]]> http://www.goodreads.com/book_link/follow/8?book_id=77477