Had it been written decades before, Angela Flournoy's novel, "The Turner House," would have been a huge 500+ or more page novel, in the grand family saga tradition. Flournoy gives readers this tradition and structure in just 340 pages, remarkably keeping a family of parents, and their thirteen children (!!!!!!!!!!) in scope and perspective.. But, by the last hundred or so pages, I was anxious for things to wrap up, as I thought the story was being more drawn out than it needs to be.
The plot is simple. Mama is getting old, the house is in disarray, and the siblings have to decide what to do with it--sell or not sell. In addition to all these travails, one gets a microcosmic history of the city of Detroit, the riots, and everything. In some ways, this historical context is the most gripping part of the book. One can see how each time period in the city made the Turner children who they are, based on when they grew up.
Well written, if a bit dense, "The Turner House" is a worthwhile read that unfortunately stops short of being the great novel it so wants to be. And I wanted it to be, too.
But this is Flournoy's first novel, and she is just cutting her teeth. Perhaps by the next book, she will have sharpened them.
Time will tell, darlings!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment