Tournament of Books discussion

location to discuss All This.. inclusion in the short list and general thoughts on the book (haven't heard many so far in the longlist discussion)

The ebook is on sale today for $2.99, in case anyone wants to pick it up.

Just finished this and really didn’t care for it, and it’s the type of story — familial drama — that I tend to love. But I just didn’t see the point of hanging out with these cliched, unpleasant people. The conclusions drawn about abuse and parents and children were ones I’ve seen plenty of times before, and been explored better and more in depth. Counting on this one to go down in the first round.

I just finished this as well, and I actually loved it. I thought it was incredibly unique in structure, and the way it showed the effect Victor had on the people around him so subtly but fully, how they were changed but not broken, how they remained fully good. I've read several stories of abusive parents, and haven't seen it handled in this way, with the disparity in how each character was affected and this underlying sense of hope.

I also loved how it brought in the inner stories of peripheral characters, so you could get a sense of all the bustling lives in the city, how every person has an intricate story. The writing and character development were also fantastic. (Twyla was especially fascinating to me.)

(Also got a kick out of how Victor was modeled after a certain president...)

I really liked this one. Attenberg can write, can't she?

Just finished this one, not completely sure what to think of it just yet. Generally I enjoy stories told from multiple point of views but this was maybe a little bit too much, although it was fun to see all the very different lives crossing at some point. Overall I liked it, but I hope there are better books ahead.

Irene wrote: "Just finished this one, not completely sure what to think of it just yet. Generally I enjoy stories told from multiple point of views but this was maybe a little bit too much, although it was fun t..."

shoot -this is one of the ones with a super long waitlist and I was starting to consider spending the money on it.

Don't let me discourage you, I think I had too high expectations for this book. I liked it but didn't love it as much as I thought I would. Bu

While I understand why some people won't connect with this book, I found it a really enjoyable character-driven novel. The people portrayed were complicated, and the family dynamics felt scary real. I also loved the small insights into passing strangers!

It feels very Corrections-ish to me, which isn't a bad thing. It's a solid, quick read so far. (Just over halfway. )

I was on track with this one for a solid 4 star read - for many reasons given here already: strongly drawn characters, interesting study of family dynamics, great writing - but I feel like the ending let me down. Something changed toward the end that just left me cold. It feels like it turned a bit... corny? And the last chapter for me felt unnecessary at best. I wish it had ended a bit sooner. But she's a great writer. First I've read of hers and I'll be checking out others.

Jen wrote: "I was on track with this one for a solid 4 star read - for many reasons given here already: strongly drawn characters, interesting study of family dynamics, great writing - but I feel like the endi..."

My only issue with the ending was that I felt like there were answers hinted at throughout that were never fully resolved. I also felt like I understood Barbra's character less...She was somewhat 2-dimensional before this, and then the ending started to reveal that third dimension but then...stopped short, I guess?

And then the last chapter was told by the daughters, which seemed like an interesting choice, since they hadn't really played a big part beforehand. I didn't fault her for this, I felt like I had to give credit for it being a creative choice (as was the snapshot of Barbra's character), although again neither of these sections were as fulfilling as I wanted.

It's amazing how much info Attenberg can get into a page of text. The way she gives us the coroner's entire life story in one chapter is impressive. She gets to the point and drives the story and yet never leaves the characters behind. I enjoyed this one a lot. Not sure if it'll stick with me for long though. Not really a ToB winner-type book.

I follow Attenberg on twitter and she wrote the other day that she wants to write a novel about a woman who goes to a dinner party with five couples throughout the night destroys each marriage. I'm ready to preorder that book.

Elizabeth wrote: "Jen wrote: "I was on track with this one for a solid 4 star read - for many reasons given here already: strongly drawn characters, interesting study of family dynamics, great writing - but I feel l..."

Good points here. My feelings were up and down throughout reading this, but overall I was entertained. I wanted more or less of some characters, but appreciated that it wasn't overwritten. I don't think it will go far in the tournament but we can always be surprised by the judges.

Jason wrote: "It's amazing how much info Attenberg can get into a page of text. The way she gives us the coroner's entire life story in one chapter is impressive. She gets to the point and drives the story and y..."

That sounds like a great premise - I'm also interested in reading that one when it's out!

Aaron wrote: "Just finished this and really didn’t care for it, and it’s the type of story — familial drama — that I tend to love. But I just didn’t see the point of hanging out with these cliched, unpleasant pe..."

I agree. I simply didn't like nor care what happened to these people. And (view spoiler)[Twila's affair with her father-in-law was just too soap opera-ish for me (hide spoiler)] My least favorite on the short list so far (I've read 7). Having said that, I appreciate the other comments here. They have made me think about the book a little more.

I kept thinking of Bill Clegg's first novel, Did You Ever Have a Family, a story where each person has a different piece of the information and the central character is outside the story for a reason (in Clegg it's trauma, in Attenberg it's because he's dying.)

I read this while on the way to say goodbye to my father-in-law who was dying in hospice and passed away Sunday, so it was a bizarre book to pick up. I didn't actually know the subject matter, I just had it on my Kindle and needed to check it off the list. I ended up liking it especially the ending (view spoiler)[because honestly I would have been disappointed if there had been some kind of redemption storyline. It's making a statement to watch someone die and just walk away, wow. (hide spoiler)]

in general, I enjoyed the way Attenberg puts a person down on paper so quickly yet completely - that being said, I didn't find a resounding message to the story (is it 'we survived him?' 'our parents don't make us who we are?' 'people suck?') to grant it anything that will stick for me.
I also thought the toss-in character chapters were obvious tack-on's and seemed designed to add a diverse flavor and not much else (the black coroner & Twilla's gay BFF) - I felt a little like the author thought 'oh, this takes place in New Orleans so it probably shouldn't all be rich white people!' They were interesting characters (I'd especially read a book w/Sharon as the MC) but they were secondary or tertiary at best and just padded the overall length. It irked.

Jenny (Reading Envy) wrote: "I kept thinking of Bill Clegg's first novel, Did You Ever Have a Family, a story where each person has a different piece of the information and the central character is outside the ..."

Jenny, I'm so sorry for your loss.

Amy wrote: "I also thought the toss-in character chapters were obvious tack-on's and seemed designed to add a diverse flavor and not much else (the black coroner & Twilla's gay BFF) - I felt a little like the author thought 'oh, this takes place in New Orleans so it probably shouldn't all be rich white people!' They were interesting characters (I'd especially read a book w/Sharon as the MC) but they were secondary or tertiary at best and just padded the overall length. It irked."

I felt the same way. Sharon is interesting, but that chapter was almost 10% of the entire book's length according to my Kindle, and came at a time when I thought things were picking up for the other characters, and although she is a great character, I just did not care. At all. It threw a wrench into my momentum and absolutely felt like padding. I could barely keep the "main" characters and their kids straight, I didn't need detours into strangers, too.

Overall the book just kind of felt insubstantial to me. The writing itself (sentences, style, etc.) were fine, overall it just seemed to lack depth. None of the characters felt fully realized to me.

C wrote: "Jenny, I'm so sorry for your loss.."

The same from me, Jenny, to you and your family.

Nadine wrote: "C wrote: "Jenny, I'm so sorry for your loss.."

The same from me, Jenny, to you and your family."

Oh thank you. I find literature seems to always speak to the hard parts of life!

Paige wrote: "Amy wrote: "I also thought the toss-in character chapters were obvious tack-on's and seemed designed to add a diverse flavor and not much else (the black coroner & Twilla's gay BFF) - I felt a litt..."

Yes, I was also thrown by that character's introduction, and it did seem like an afterthought. I was expecting some significant tie-in... strange.

@Jenny, I'm glad reading is helping you through this hard time. While I generally enjoy a good character-redemption ending to a story, I agree that this one needed to avoid that.

Ebook is back at $2.99 today on kindle