983. Unless

Unless
Carol Shields
2002

Around 225 pages

Reta Winters is a successful author whose daughter decides to drop out of school and become a panhandler with a sign around her neck that says "Goodness." This is the kind of nonsense that makes me not want to have kids.

I hesitate to call this novel quiet or understated, because is that just a label we like to apply to works penned by female authors? But I think it applies here. This was an unhurried story, which is ironic, because Shields died shortly after its publication. And I do love novels that dig into the process of writing.

It felt very real, and without knowing anything about her personal life, you get the sense that she deeply understands the pain that can come from being a parent. This pairs well with a Paul Auster novel, and contraception.

RATING: ****-

Interesting Facts:

Adapted into film in 2016.

UP NEXT: Islands by Dan Sleigh

861. The Stone Diaries

The Stone Diaries
Carol Shields
1993
Around 360 pages

The novels that follow the lives of ordinary people are a mixed bag. On the one hand, it's a nice change of pace to get stories that closer to real life. On the other hand, most ordinary people are boring and passive in their decision making. Which can make for a not so fun reading experience. Fortunately, Shields is such good writer, that I still enjoyed this even if Daisy Goodwill got on my nerves, starting with her name. 

We get the entire life story of Daisy, whose mother died in childbirth. She initially lives with her neighbor and the neighbor's adult son, then moves back in with her father after the neighbor dies. And she goes to have other relationships, of varying levels of success.

Much like real life, some chapters were more interesting than others. It's a testament to Shields' talent that she was able to take a novel about someone like Daisy and make it as entertaining as she did. I still prefer John Irving for life stories, as his milestones and events are a bit more colorful.

Haven't been too impressed with the novels since The Robber Bride. Let's shake things up, shall we?

RATING: ***--

Interesting Facts:

Won the 1995 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in the United States.

UP NEXT: A Suitable Boy by Vikram Seth