Body Surfing: A Novel by Anita Shreve Summary and Reviews
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Book Reviews of Body Surfing: A Novel
Book Review: Anita is a thoughtful author.
Summary: 4 Stars
I love Anita Shreve...I have read all but 2 of her books so far (The Last Time They Met is one of my top ten faves). Body Surfing was engaging, and I liked the shock with the wedding episode. I didn't love the ending, and I was sort disappointed with the main character blindly living in the hotel for a month. It seemed unrealistic and a little predictable...haven't I read this similar scene before? Overall, I did enjoy the book, and would recommend it to other Shreve fans.Book Review: Body Surfing
Summary: 1 Stars
A friend who gave Body Surfing a rave review recommended it as a must read. I have only read 30 pages and I am really not interested in finding out how it ends. It is half screenplay, giving directions, "She leans against the railing". The other half is written like a telegram just missing the "stop" at the end of a sentence. Short broken sentences that reveal little to nothing about the intensity of the characters. The blurb on the back of the book makes you feel as though you can relate to Sydney, and yet when you open the book the cover doesn't match the inside. This is a tough book to get into. I feel as though I don't know the characters nor do I care. This book so far is the least impressive book I have read in a long time and I can't believe I actually bought it. Thank goodness for library cards!Book Review: By far the best since I read my first, Pilot's Wife.
Summary: 5 Stars
Pilot's Wife was my first Shreve book. I loved them all that I have read but this one by far was the one I liked the best. I loved how it tied in with the other books...the characters and settings. If you are a Shreve fan, it is a must read. ENJOY!
Book Review: Characters lack depth
Summary: 2 Stars
I have found with Anita Shreve's books I either love them or hate them and this falls in the latter grouping. The house in this book is the same one in Fortune's Rocks and The Pilot's Wife. The scenic descriptions are as usual breathtaking. Anita makes you feel the surf breaking on the sand! But in this book the characters absolutely lack any depth. You simply never feel that you know them or, worse yet, even wish to. Sydney has been widowed once, divorced once yet these things are barely touched on. Too bad there is more thought given to the sound of the waves then to the feelings of the characters. Even when she is left at the altar you do not feel any emotional ties to Sydney.
I am quite sorry that I purchased this book.
Book Review: Complicated Lives.
Summary: 3 Stars
The setting is a beach house in New Hampshire, the summer home of the Edwards family. Sydney is hired to be the tutor for their "slow" daughter, Julie, while Mr. Edwards is an architect who enjoys his rose garden and collects historical documents on the house they're living in. It is the same house that was featured in several other Shreve novels, like "The Pilot's Wife". Mrs. Edwards strikes me as a snob and a bit of a racist with her remarks about Sydney being half-Jewish. The brothers, Ben and Jeff, who arrive a little later in the novel are the catalysts to a big change in Sydney's life.
Sydney is 29, divorced once and widowed once. She is floating through life, not sure what to do or where to go. She accepts the job as a tutor for the summer and builds a good relationship with Julie even discovering her artistic flair. In the midst of this summer she falls for one of the brother's and a relationship begins, rather suddenly.
The whole story is based on this relationship and its outcome.
I enjoyed the clean writing and the lack of overdescriptive paragraphs that tend to drive me crazy in some novels. I like to be able to picture the characters in my own way. Having said that, I would have liked a little more background or information on some of the characters, most notably the two brothers. I think we could have used a bit more fleshing out of their characters. I still do not completely understand why Jeff acted the way he did. There are so many internal struggles going on with this family that each character is a story unto themselves. Also, I had hoped for more of an ending but I guess I will have to make some assumptions as to Sydney's future life.
Overall, an easy read that kept me hooked.