A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley

A Thousand Acres by Jane Smiley
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Great plotting, great sentences, and (unlike some of the other readers) I did feel for Ginny and Rose. I was surprised that this novel about feminine rage was written and acknowledged in the 1990s, though of course, everything we're talking about now in the #metoo is a great deal older that. But it was the palpable anger that seemed different than a lot of other novels I've read, giving it a completely different aspect, which feels very modern now. We all know Larry Cooks now, even if we don't always know their secrets. One thing which makes me unable to properly view this book though is that it's based on King Lear and I haven't read King Lear yet, so that's my next task.

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A Delicate Aggression by David O. Dowling

A Delicate Aggression: Savagery and Survival in the Iowa Writers' Workshop by David O. Dowling
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My interest waxed and waned while reading this. As other reviewers mentioned it was more of a collection of biographies about certain teachers and certain students at the Iowa Writers Workshop MFA in three different eras. I was originally hoping to learn more about the actual program, especially the modern era because my husband attended for fiction writing in the early 2000s, but it didn’t provide that. Nonetheless, I found the information about Paul Engle, Flannery O’Connor, and Marilynne Robinson very interesting. Engle created and managed to fund an amazing program and the author is confusingly kind of negative towards him. But overall, I’m glad I read this.

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Dodgers by Bill Beverly

Dodgers by Bill Beverly
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

This was well-written and solid. It dragged a little in places and at times it felt like too much of a guy's book (if that even makes sense?). The character of Ty did not make a lot of sense to me. There were also some plot points that didn't make sense to me. But overall, I was satisfied with it when I finished reading it.

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Home by Marilynne Robinson

Home by Marilynne Robinson
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

Marilynne Robinson is a genius, and I love her fiction. Unfortunately, this one is my least favorite. Gilead is the best book ever, and Lila is a close second. Home is another perspective on the same characters and the story is concurrent with Gilead. (Lila takes place before Gilead.) The problems are that I don't like anything I learn about the characters in this novel. The spiritual material- which Robinson excels at- is much less clear and less moving. And the relationship that develop between the brother and sister isn't as interesting and moving as the relationships that animate Housekeeping, Gilead, and Lila. Maybe I'm being unfair to the book because I'm comparing it to some of the best novels I've ever read, Robinson's other books.

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Lila by Marilynne Robinson

Lila by Marilynne Robinson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I read and loved Gilead, and this is book is also wonderful in the ways Gilead was wonderful. This book was also very romantic and full of love. It's hard to review the novels you love more than ordinary novels. I don't feel up to the task of reviewing what is clearly the work of a genius. There's not much to be said about it other than it approaches perfection. It allows us to inhabit a person a time that is not our own. It also allows us to try to grasp what Marilyn Robinson understands and believes about religion which is ... a lot. Beautiful novel. Please read it.

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Gilead by Marilynne Robinson

Gilead by Marilynne Robinson
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

I think it's the perfect novel. The perfect sermon. The perfect prayer.

“These people who can see right through you never quite do you justice, because they never give you credit for the effort you’re making to be better than you actually are, which is difficult and well meant and deserving of some little notice.” ― Marilynne Robinson, Gilead

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