Middle Age by Joyce
Carol Oates
A Romance
Harper Collins - 2001
ISBN: 0066209443 - Hardcover
Reviewed by Beverly J. Rowe, MyShelf.com
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Fans of Joyce Carol
Oates will recognize her trademark style of writing with sentence fragments
and fractured thoughts, and, if you aren't a fan, you will be after you
read this novel in which she chronicles the lives of the wealthy residents
of Salthill. Charismatic Adam Berendt is a 50-something artist and sculptor
who dies as the result of an untimely heart attack when rescuing a child
from drowning in a boating incident. His circle of friends is stunned
and, ultimately, adversely affected by his death. What an enigma he was.
He was wealthy, but lived like a poor man. He was loved by everyone, but
avoided any intimate relationships.
Adam's attorney, Roger Cavanagh, forged Adam's name to his will, post-mortem,
and convinced Marina Troy (who was in love with Adam) to witness the signature,
sealing her fate as his accomplice in the deed. Implementing the will
brought to light the many ways the man was different from who he seemed.
Couples divorce, split up, get back together and disappear because of
his death and the mystery of his life. Teenagers renounce their parents,
and adults embark on missions of self-discovery.
The title of the book suggests that it is a romance, but it can't be classified
as a romance in the usual meaning of the genre. The characters are offbeat
with strange agendas, yet there is some of all of us in each of their
personalities. Oates wrings every drop of emotion out of the characters
and her readers. She teaches us life's basic truths while getting us involved
with the lives of these wonderful characters. It is a compelling read.
Oates has become a literary addiction for me.
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