Question 5 of 6 #nyrbbookclub
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vivastory I do agree with this. I am at the same age as one of the characters in TD, so I think that it has something special to say for people at a certain time in their lives. But it doesn't read as a mid-life crisis novel, either. One of the fascinating aspects of TD is how it tackles themes (environmental disaster, romance, mid-life uncertainty) without becoming exclusively one of those type of novels. It's broader than that. 2y
DrexEdit In places it started to remind me of Barbara Pym's Quarter in Autumn which I found very bleak for a "middle-age" novel. But this one always pulled back to a place of hope or at least possibilities. Middle-age seems to be where things settle in for a lifetime, or everything changes! 2y
vivastory @DrexEdit I have been meaning to read Pym for awhile now. 2y
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DrexEdit @vivastory I didn't warm to the Quartet, but the writing was lovely and many people here have assured me not all her novels are as bleak. I intend to give her another try. 2y
vivastory @DrexEdit Thanks for the tip. I will keep it in mind. 2y
quietjenn Yes, and I think being squarely middle age at the moment definitely impacts how I've reacted to the novel and makes certain aspects of it resonate in a way they wouldn't have otherwise. 2y
arubabookwoman I didn't think it was so much a novel of middle-age as a novel for anyone who one day looks around and asks, "Is this all there is?" @DrexEdit & @vivastory Quartet in Autumn is Pym's darkest novel (& my favorite of the 5 or 6 I've read). I also think it's more a novel of old age rather than middle-age. But what is age? When I turned 70 I suddenly realized I could no longer call myself middle-aged any more. 2y
Liz_M I also not so sure this is a novel of middle-age as it is a great novel for a subset of single middle-aged people and those that seem to have drifted into a life of subsistence rather than fullness. It is more hopeful than many of the “spinster lit“ novels we've read the past few years but more melancholy than some of the more family/relationship focused novels we've read. 2y
BarbaraBB @arubabookwoman Exactly, the “is this all there is” theme is of all ages I think. Also I‘m not sure what age is meant with middle-aged, it‘s more a state of mind I think. Both William and Naera seemed older to me than I am myself though they are younger. Not sure what I want to say but the world middle-aged always confuses me because I don‘t know what it implies. 2y
vivastory @arubabookwoman @drexedit It sounds fascinating. I have been meaning to read it for awhile & I am going to move it up my TBR especially after the endorsements. I just ordered it. 2y
vivastory @Liz_M Very well stated. There was a recent thread on NYRB challenging someone to name a heartwarming story that they have published. Needless to say, it was tough. (edited) 2y
Leftcoastzen I think as many of you do there are stages in life where you get stuck, where you think life is going in a positive direction that will hold then it stops , the “is that all there is” type moment . It tends to be in midlife , but it can be earlier or later. 2y
vivastory @Leftcoastzen I think this is a great point. I also think that there can be events extraneous as to if an individual is truly “mid-life“ that can precipitate reevaluations. I can imagine that the events of the past 2 years have had such an effect. 2y
batsy I agree that it's more a state of mind novel than anything else, and will speak to anyone dealing with these questions in their mind, but because I've "recently" entered my 40s and feeling pretty blah about life and society's expectations, the bit about it being a middle-aged novel really spoke to me, too. 2y
GatheringBooks Loved reading the musings about what constitutes middle age: is it when you reach 40? 50? The book seems to suggest 40ish. While I did appreciate the subtlety in the language and the carefully executed turns of phrases and the surprise suicide towards the end which pulled the rug from under my feet as a reader, I felt a tad impatient with it, the slowness felt laborious to me which is probably is how it should be, but I suspect it may 👇🏼 2y
GatheringBooks (Cont) Simply be where I am at in my life. While I recognize the allegorical nature of the turtle dilemma and all that it signifies, I did not feel as emotionally invested as I probably needed to be for the novel to work for me. Again I blame it on my inattentiveness and the crazy million and one things I am currently doing. (edited) 2y
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