Pat D. (pat0814) reviewed on 7/24/2012 + 379 more book reviews

I tried to like this book; however, I found the plot to be bleak and the very opposite of noteworthy. There is not one likeable character doing one kind, charitable or generous act during the entire plodding book. I am not looking for an uplifting book with a "message" or a puerile happy ending, but I would like to think that there is more to life and living than is represented in this book. I like books that make me think while I am reading them and, if I am truly fortunate, when I have finished reading them. Jonathan Franzen has created a goup of greedy, self-serving characters who never deviate from our initial introduction to them. The author has talent - the characters are well defined and the plot makes sense within the confines of the structure created by Franzen. The world is surely peopled by persons who belie his definition of living within a family. This book saddened my heart.

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