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To Nourish and Consume
A HAUNTING RETURN TO A FIERY LOVE TRIANGLE Brian Falk and his best friend, Dabney, share a passion for the beautiful and wealthy Jackie, their childhood playmate and the prize catch of their social set. But, the young men are also drawn to each other a secret, illicit connection that is cut short when Jackie chooses to wed the more moneyed Dabney. Soon after graduation, a devastated Brian flees his hometown and, for ten agonizing years, tries to overcome the anguish that has all but consumed him. Now he is drawn back to try to answer some of the questions he can no longer Is he over Jackie? Was what he felt for Dabney really love? Does Jackie still love him? As Brian desperately searches for closure, old wounds are reopened, a new love appears and revelations about his past throw his life into renewed turmoil.
300 pages, Paperback
First published January 28, 2010
5 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews
January 12, 2011
To Nourish and Consume delivers in many ways a classic plot that almost every reader can relate to; love triangle that forces the protagonist to acknowledge identity issues and of course coming home again only to find that it has remained unchanged. The story begins with a brief introduction to Brain Falk and his best friends and love interests Jackie and Dabney. Both men love Jackie but find that they are also intrigued with one another. Like all good love triangle stories though it must come to an end when eventually two members break off and leave the third devastated and forced to question his own views on love and relationships. That is exactly what happens when Jackie chooses, just after graduation, to marry Dabney simply because he is more financially endowed. Brain flees and finds that in the ten years that he is away from his home town he is unable to maintain intimate relationships. After ten years of trying to live and forget his love for both Jackie and Dabney, Brain Falk, our protagonist, takes us on a journey to discover himself, his true love and his connection to his home town.
What Brain discovers when he returns home is not only does it seem that time has remained still in his home town, but all his emotional angst so to remains. Now he is forced to decide if he truly loved Jackie or if what he felt for Dabney was in fact love. He also must open both his heart and mind to his new love interest Alissa and decide if he is ready to leave the past behind to fully engage himself in the relationship with Alissa.
This novel had many fantastic lines, ones that were both poetic and universal. The kind that can only be produced by an author who both understands his characters and whom has taken time to play with language and make it gently flow with the mood of the novel (see some of my favorites below in the Novel Moments section). I found myself underlining and tweeting these fantastic moments often. All that being said I cannot help but be somewhat disappointed that the story did not always live up to those poetic moments. This novel is all about looking back and picking apart personal history to heal and move on and yet Brain (and our narrator) only superficially share the past with the reader. I feel like the husband in Alan Robbe-Grillet’s Jealousy peering through the blinds at Brain, Jackie and Dabney seeing just glimpses of their interactions and having to make sense of those glimpses. “Outside” seems to be a theme of the book, Brain is outside of Jackie and Dabney and the world they belong to and because of the holes left by unfulfilled details of the past the reader too is always left just outside the story.
However, that is not to say the book is not worth reading. Although it is promoted as a novel for Generation Y it is more universal than the publisher and the author lead their readers to believe, simply because the overarching theme, love lost and found. Personally, I feel that if more time was spent building up the relationships of the characters the emotional impact of the return home would have been greater and the willing disconnection of Brain from Jackie in the end would have been more powerful. I recommend this book to those who enjoy love triangles or coming of age stories (while I would not really classify this book as a coming of age story it does contain some aspects of one that would intrigue those who enjoy typical coming of age stories).
Novel Moments:
“Fear can sometimes bond one heart to another as strongly as any other emotion, fear being one of the more natural emotional responses.” (Kindle Location 17)
“Outside I turned to see a strand of her blonde hair hanging suspended in front of her with the background light from the open door illuminating it and silhouetting her face. I had always noticed her in that way, even when we were children. To me Jackie had always evoked images such as apparition of a dream, or the subject of a portrait, or as the kind of feeling only written about in poems.” (Kindle Location 105)
“Outside the world went by in the form of passing light and shadow.” (Kindle Location 397)
“Outside the gate, turning toward the distant train station, I walked along the side of the road. Above me bright lines of sunlight streamed through the crooked limbs of the cottonwood trees and the rustling sound of the leaves came, riding on a light wind coming off the lake. Sheltered from the curling breezes and feeling the warm sun on my face, all at once I began to feel happy and unafraid.” (Kindle Location 10932)
Note: I received this book for review from the author and the publishing company for free to review. In no way did this effect what I said about the book, the author or the rating that I gave the book.
What Brain discovers when he returns home is not only does it seem that time has remained still in his home town, but all his emotional angst so to remains. Now he is forced to decide if he truly loved Jackie or if what he felt for Dabney was in fact love. He also must open both his heart and mind to his new love interest Alissa and decide if he is ready to leave the past behind to fully engage himself in the relationship with Alissa.
This novel had many fantastic lines, ones that were both poetic and universal. The kind that can only be produced by an author who both understands his characters and whom has taken time to play with language and make it gently flow with the mood of the novel (see some of my favorites below in the Novel Moments section). I found myself underlining and tweeting these fantastic moments often. All that being said I cannot help but be somewhat disappointed that the story did not always live up to those poetic moments. This novel is all about looking back and picking apart personal history to heal and move on and yet Brain (and our narrator) only superficially share the past with the reader. I feel like the husband in Alan Robbe-Grillet’s Jealousy peering through the blinds at Brain, Jackie and Dabney seeing just glimpses of their interactions and having to make sense of those glimpses. “Outside” seems to be a theme of the book, Brain is outside of Jackie and Dabney and the world they belong to and because of the holes left by unfulfilled details of the past the reader too is always left just outside the story.
However, that is not to say the book is not worth reading. Although it is promoted as a novel for Generation Y it is more universal than the publisher and the author lead their readers to believe, simply because the overarching theme, love lost and found. Personally, I feel that if more time was spent building up the relationships of the characters the emotional impact of the return home would have been greater and the willing disconnection of Brain from Jackie in the end would have been more powerful. I recommend this book to those who enjoy love triangles or coming of age stories (while I would not really classify this book as a coming of age story it does contain some aspects of one that would intrigue those who enjoy typical coming of age stories).
Novel Moments:
“Fear can sometimes bond one heart to another as strongly as any other emotion, fear being one of the more natural emotional responses.” (Kindle Location 17)
“Outside I turned to see a strand of her blonde hair hanging suspended in front of her with the background light from the open door illuminating it and silhouetting her face. I had always noticed her in that way, even when we were children. To me Jackie had always evoked images such as apparition of a dream, or the subject of a portrait, or as the kind of feeling only written about in poems.” (Kindle Location 105)
“Outside the world went by in the form of passing light and shadow.” (Kindle Location 397)
“Outside the gate, turning toward the distant train station, I walked along the side of the road. Above me bright lines of sunlight streamed through the crooked limbs of the cottonwood trees and the rustling sound of the leaves came, riding on a light wind coming off the lake. Sheltered from the curling breezes and feeling the warm sun on my face, all at once I began to feel happy and unafraid.” (Kindle Location 10932)
Note: I received this book for review from the author and the publishing company for free to review. In no way did this effect what I said about the book, the author or the rating that I gave the book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 20, 2010
This review first appeared on my blog: http://jewelknits.blogspot.com/2010/1...
Any of us who have lived for a while have, unless we're extremely lucky, experienced the betrayal of a close friend and the heartbreak of a first love lost.
To Nourish & Consume is a "coming-of-age" novel of a different sort. Brian Falk comes home from Boston to Charleton, Illinois, the small town he grew up in, after spending 10 years away. With one published novel under his belt, he is hoping that the return home will give him the inspiration and time to pen a second novel.
Charleton is a town divided by the harbor. On one side, large rambling Victorians, home to moneyed summer residents. On the other, the smaller homes of the year-round, working- and middle-class residents.
As a child, and through high school graduation, Brian's best friends were Dabney and Jackie, two of the summer visitors. He loved them both, and lived the winter months waiting for the storied summers when he was able to spend time with them. Their families introduced him to a different sort of life, with the privilege and culture that comes with lots of wealth.
Dabney, with his changeable moods, was always afraid and made up for it with bluster, loudness and aggression. Jackie, however, pushed down her fears and went through life barely skimming the surface of her own feelings.
This story follows Brian as he attempts to come to terms with his feelings for both Dabney and Jackie. The loss of their friendship has caused him to be unable to commit to anyone else, and it is evident that he still has unresolved feelings for both of them. As the tale of their estrangement comes out in tantalizing pieces interspersed throughout the novel, we see Brian reacquaint himself with other old companions from his winters, including a special girl, Alissa who is the sister of another childhood friend. As he begins to re-adjust to his new "old" life, he starts working with his father, a craftsman and builder of boats, and finds a somewhat creative outlet in freelancing for the local newspaper.
When both Jackie and Dabney reappear, one at a time, into his new life, we experience his struggle to come to terms with his past.
There are certain passages in this book that are so well-written that they were almost lyrical in quality. I love how the author drew his characters deftly and in small pieces. The reader gets to know each of the characters, and I felt almost personally invested in how Brian's story turned out.
I really liked this book. It was quietly powerful, and I don't think anyone could go wrong by getting it onto their own shelves.
QUOTES:
"...Hemingway talks about the 'well' people have, and that it needs to be refilled from the springs within from time to time. I think that's what we do when we have to get away like that. I think that's maybe what you're doing. It's the exhale before the inhale."
"You'll find, as you get older, that it's strange, Brian," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder, "how small this world really is."
When he said it, I felt small, like a boy receiving his first piece of fatherly, man-to-man advice.
"You know," she continued, "we all try to hang on so hard to things like that, things that aren't quite the right fit. I don't know why we do it, or why God allows us to, but it happens. It's like we're so scared that we'll make the wrong decision or that we'll have some regrets about it that we just stay in one place out of fear."
(I received a complimentary copy of this title to facilitate my review.)
Any of us who have lived for a while have, unless we're extremely lucky, experienced the betrayal of a close friend and the heartbreak of a first love lost.
To Nourish & Consume is a "coming-of-age" novel of a different sort. Brian Falk comes home from Boston to Charleton, Illinois, the small town he grew up in, after spending 10 years away. With one published novel under his belt, he is hoping that the return home will give him the inspiration and time to pen a second novel.
Charleton is a town divided by the harbor. On one side, large rambling Victorians, home to moneyed summer residents. On the other, the smaller homes of the year-round, working- and middle-class residents.
As a child, and through high school graduation, Brian's best friends were Dabney and Jackie, two of the summer visitors. He loved them both, and lived the winter months waiting for the storied summers when he was able to spend time with them. Their families introduced him to a different sort of life, with the privilege and culture that comes with lots of wealth.
Dabney, with his changeable moods, was always afraid and made up for it with bluster, loudness and aggression. Jackie, however, pushed down her fears and went through life barely skimming the surface of her own feelings.
This story follows Brian as he attempts to come to terms with his feelings for both Dabney and Jackie. The loss of their friendship has caused him to be unable to commit to anyone else, and it is evident that he still has unresolved feelings for both of them. As the tale of their estrangement comes out in tantalizing pieces interspersed throughout the novel, we see Brian reacquaint himself with other old companions from his winters, including a special girl, Alissa who is the sister of another childhood friend. As he begins to re-adjust to his new "old" life, he starts working with his father, a craftsman and builder of boats, and finds a somewhat creative outlet in freelancing for the local newspaper.
When both Jackie and Dabney reappear, one at a time, into his new life, we experience his struggle to come to terms with his past.
There are certain passages in this book that are so well-written that they were almost lyrical in quality. I love how the author drew his characters deftly and in small pieces. The reader gets to know each of the characters, and I felt almost personally invested in how Brian's story turned out.
I really liked this book. It was quietly powerful, and I don't think anyone could go wrong by getting it onto their own shelves.
QUOTES:
"...Hemingway talks about the 'well' people have, and that it needs to be refilled from the springs within from time to time. I think that's what we do when we have to get away like that. I think that's maybe what you're doing. It's the exhale before the inhale."
"You'll find, as you get older, that it's strange, Brian," he said, putting his hand on my shoulder, "how small this world really is."
When he said it, I felt small, like a boy receiving his first piece of fatherly, man-to-man advice.
"You know," she continued, "we all try to hang on so hard to things like that, things that aren't quite the right fit. I don't know why we do it, or why God allows us to, but it happens. It's like we're so scared that we'll make the wrong decision or that we'll have some regrets about it that we just stay in one place out of fear."
(I received a complimentary copy of this title to facilitate my review.)
October 12, 2011
To Nourish and Consume
Ryan O’Reilly
Did you ever what the story line of Sex and the City might be like if the story had been told from a make point of view? It would definitely be different, but would it be better? I don’t really know, I do know that this story is better because it is told by the lead male character, Brian Falk. When I first started the book, I kept going back to the beginning to be sure that it was being told by a man and not a woman. I kept thinking that I was reading a coming of age story form a female point of view. This didn’t matter once I got into the story. The story held my interest, it didn’t matter which voice it was being told in.
Brian Falk returns to his adolescent home to try to discover what shaped and made him that man that he turned out to be. Brian fled his home town after his high school graduation and spends the next ten years agonizing over what might have been. He is part of a trio of friends that shaped him more than he shaped them. He falls in love with both of his friends bit in different ways. He is warned by the grandfather of one of them, that he will never be right for his granddaughter. Brian is very human at this point; he hears what he thinks is being said, not what is really being said. He is also very much a teenager. He reacts by running away, not by staying and questioning or fighting. His two friends, Jackie and Dabney, grow up and apparently forget about him. They marry each other, make a life and make a mess of it. Jackie is cold and manipulative; Dabney has anger issues and is explosive. Brian also makes a mess of his life. Brian’s mess is that he can’t get over either of them, and can’t form meaningful relationships because of them. He carries the past with him and always wonders what if. He is successful in other parts of his life, and hopes that by returning to the scene of the crime, so to speak, he can make peace with his life and move on. No more spoilers here, you need to read the story to find out what happens. Is he successful or is he pulled back into his old life?
Reilly has created a wonderful character in Brian Falk, sensitive, perceptive and caring. On the surface, he is the kind of man that every woman is looking for. Brian is also quite capable of being a “bad boy”, also what some women look for in a man. The underlying story revolves around Brian’s questioning of all the “what if’s” in his life. What if he and Jackie could have had a romantic future? What if he could have been a better friend to Dabney ? What if he had stayed and taken over the family business? The what if’s go on and on and held shape the story. I’m not sure how many writers can pull off developing a character this way without destroying the character; I know that Ryan O’Reilly pulled it off. In the end, all of the characters realize that they shape their own future and Brian realizes that he has come to a good place in his life.
I also learned that a story of self discovery and growth can be told equally well by a male voice.
This is a book that I will recommend without reservation. I give it 5 stars !
Ryan O’Reilly
Did you ever what the story line of Sex and the City might be like if the story had been told from a make point of view? It would definitely be different, but would it be better? I don’t really know, I do know that this story is better because it is told by the lead male character, Brian Falk. When I first started the book, I kept going back to the beginning to be sure that it was being told by a man and not a woman. I kept thinking that I was reading a coming of age story form a female point of view. This didn’t matter once I got into the story. The story held my interest, it didn’t matter which voice it was being told in.
Brian Falk returns to his adolescent home to try to discover what shaped and made him that man that he turned out to be. Brian fled his home town after his high school graduation and spends the next ten years agonizing over what might have been. He is part of a trio of friends that shaped him more than he shaped them. He falls in love with both of his friends bit in different ways. He is warned by the grandfather of one of them, that he will never be right for his granddaughter. Brian is very human at this point; he hears what he thinks is being said, not what is really being said. He is also very much a teenager. He reacts by running away, not by staying and questioning or fighting. His two friends, Jackie and Dabney, grow up and apparently forget about him. They marry each other, make a life and make a mess of it. Jackie is cold and manipulative; Dabney has anger issues and is explosive. Brian also makes a mess of his life. Brian’s mess is that he can’t get over either of them, and can’t form meaningful relationships because of them. He carries the past with him and always wonders what if. He is successful in other parts of his life, and hopes that by returning to the scene of the crime, so to speak, he can make peace with his life and move on. No more spoilers here, you need to read the story to find out what happens. Is he successful or is he pulled back into his old life?
Reilly has created a wonderful character in Brian Falk, sensitive, perceptive and caring. On the surface, he is the kind of man that every woman is looking for. Brian is also quite capable of being a “bad boy”, also what some women look for in a man. The underlying story revolves around Brian’s questioning of all the “what if’s” in his life. What if he and Jackie could have had a romantic future? What if he could have been a better friend to Dabney ? What if he had stayed and taken over the family business? The what if’s go on and on and held shape the story. I’m not sure how many writers can pull off developing a character this way without destroying the character; I know that Ryan O’Reilly pulled it off. In the end, all of the characters realize that they shape their own future and Brian realizes that he has come to a good place in his life.
I also learned that a story of self discovery and growth can be told equally well by a male voice.
This is a book that I will recommend without reservation. I give it 5 stars !
November 19, 2010
There was so much that I liked about this book, and yet things that I disliked as well. First, I will say this is a book definitely written for my generation. I think everyone in Generation Y should read this, as I feel it’s a great representation of what we all go through to one extent or another. I don’t mean that to sound limiting at all, and I do feel like it has appeal for everyone, but I absolutely feel like I identified with the age range of most of the characters.
Along with that, there are several passages of great wisdom, things we all need to learn for ourselves along the way. While this is totally not a self-help book, and I don’t think anything in it is meant to be a life lesson, I found myself reading and thinking “huh, definitely so true!” It’s like when your elders tell you something, as Brian’s parents did in the book, and you just can’t see it that way until much later. Doesn’t it suck that none of us listen, btw? We’d sure save ourselves a lot of trouble if we would just listen to the wisdom of other people.
To read the rest of my review, please visit:
http://www.dorolerium.com/?p=1928
Along with that, there are several passages of great wisdom, things we all need to learn for ourselves along the way. While this is totally not a self-help book, and I don’t think anything in it is meant to be a life lesson, I found myself reading and thinking “huh, definitely so true!” It’s like when your elders tell you something, as Brian’s parents did in the book, and you just can’t see it that way until much later. Doesn’t it suck that none of us listen, btw? We’d sure save ourselves a lot of trouble if we would just listen to the wisdom of other people.
To read the rest of my review, please visit:
http://www.dorolerium.com/?p=1928
December 3, 2010
It was just sorta ok in my opinion. The writing wasn't bad, but I just didn't like the story. I felt like the main character was really wimpy for a man. I just didn't like the way he seemed to be drifting around.
November 20, 2010
Triangles and betrayals of love & friendship. 3.5 stars Review up on Aisle B http://aisleb.tumblr.com/post/1624579...
Displaying 1 - 6 of 6 reviews