Susan's review
Animal Dreams
by Barbara Kingsolver
Susan's review
Animal Dreams by Barbara Kingsolver
Susan's review
rating:
bookshelves:
fiction
I probably would not have read this book if it had not been a reading group choice for the month.
The foreshadowing seems a bit heavy-handed.
It is, however, well-crafted. One character, the out-of-country sister, seems like a vital part of the story, despite only being known through flashbacks and her letters. Some of this character's immediacy is due to the fact that her letters were often reactions to what the protagonist is doing (and writing to her about). These letters may include the letter-writer's conversations with herself (in quotation marks) or quotes from others with whom the letter-writer is in daily contact. All of this is skillfully inserted into the novel without a maze of punctuation.
Another strong point is the sense of time and place which is created: of the Southwest United States, in the 1980's.
The foreshadowing seems a bit heavy-handed.
It is, however, well-crafted. One character, the out-of-country sister, seems like a vital part of the story, despite only being known through flashbacks and her letters. Some of this character's immediacy is due to the fact that her letters were often reactions to what the protagonist is doing (and writing to her about). These letters may include the letter-writer's conversations with herself (in quotation marks) or quotes from others with whom the letter-writer is in daily contact. All of this is skillfully inserted into the novel without a maze of punctuation.
Another strong point is the sense of time and place which is created: of the Southwest United States, in the 1980's.
