After This
by Alice McDermott
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Book Summary Information
Author: Alice McDermottEdition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2007-09-25
ISBN: 0385334699
Number of pages: 288
Publisher: The Dial Press
Book Reviews of After This
Book Review: A fine literary novel
Summary: 4 Stars
New York City office worker Mary is 30 years old, unmarried, and a good Catholic girl keeping house for her father and bachelor brother when she meets John Keane at a restaurant lunch counter. It's not long after World War II, and John considers his limp from war injuries a minor matter; the real heroes are those who never came home. "After This" follows Mary, John, and their family (four children eventually) from that meeting through their youngest child's coming of age. It captures an era in a series of snapshots, most of its chapters taking place years apart.
Author McDermott's writing is beautiful, and her story's structure - while unusual - does just what I suspect she wanted it to do. It brings the reader into her characters' lives for key events, some of which might seem mundane. However, those "ordinary" moments turn out to be just as important to the characters as their lives' more obvious turning points. Through much of the book I found myself irritated by the Keane family's condescending attitude toward Mary's (apparently) one constant friend, Pauline, a lifelong single woman who also stands in for largely absent extended family. As the story ended, though, Pauline got her due at last. I suspect that if I re-read this one (and I probably will), I'll uncover layers that weren't apparent to me on first reading. In other words, this is a literary novel. My first by this author, and probably not destined to be my last.
--Reviewed by Nina M. Osier, author of "Granite Island" and 2005 EPPIE Winner "Regs"
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