Review: Arcadia Falls

This book bears distinct resemblance to Goodman's earlier Lake of Dead Languages. Both take place at elite private schools in the northeast. Both books' main characters are single mothers and teachers who move to these schools to teach under difficult circumstances. And both books rely heavily on student and faculty obsession with old myths. In Arcadia Falls the single mother in question is Meg Rosenthal, recently widowed folklore scholar, who moves herself and her daughter to a remote region of upstate New York to take a much-needed teaching job at the Arcadia School. The school began its life as a feminist artist colony, whose founders wrote and illustrated fairy tales. The school's founders, Vera Beecher and Lily Eberhart, are professional and romantic partners, but with the arrival of a charismatic sculptor at the colony, Lily finds herself in the midst of a troublesome love triangle. The consequences of this triangle will lead to Lily's death. It quickly becomes apparent to Meg that the Arcadia School is a dangerous and deadly place,not just in Lily's time, but in her own, too. The books is the retelling of three stories, that of Meg and Sally Rosenthal, that of Vera Beecher and Lily Eberhart, and the fairy tale, The Changeling Girl. Goodman does an excellent job of weaving these tales together. While the book does bear some similarities to some of Goodman's earlier work, it is not merely the same story retold. I was captivated with discovering who or what was responsible for Lily Eberhart's death. I did find that after the circumstances of Lily's death were revealed the book was neither as compelling, nor as plausible. The ending is not the most satisfying, but this was still an enjoyable and suspenseful read.

Carol Goodman, Arcadia Falls (Ballantine, 2010) ISBN: 0345497538

Review: Another Life Altogether

Set in the English provinces in the 1970s, this novel tells the story of Jesse Bennett, a troubled teenager trying to hide her mother's mental illness from the cruelty of her classmates. Deep in the throes of manic depression, Jesse's mother alternates among the local mental hospital, her bed, and tearing apart the family. Jesse's father copes by ignoring the issue, and leaves Jesse home to manage the house and her mother. A move to the countryside has vaulted Jesse into the popular clique at her new school, but her new friends are profoundly cruel to outsiders, especially Malcolm, an openly gay student. To complicate Jesse's life she develops a tremendous crush on her best friend's sister, and begins to realize that she might be a lesbian. Family, sexuality, and basic human decency wreak havoc on Jesse's conscience, as she tries to rationalize her relationship with her cruel but powerful new clique. This novel brings into stark relief the rigid social hierarchies and cruelty of high school. Jesse's story makes clear how easy it is for children to get lost. It also reminds the reader that for all of the problems and injustices that remain, we have made some real progress in educating children about sexuality. The ending was abrupt and unbelievable, but I enjoyed the reading.

Elaine Beale, Another Life Altogether (Spiegel and Grau, 2010) ISBN: 0385530048

GLBT Challenge

This challenge seemed a natural for me, as so many of my beloved Virago Modern Classics were written by lesbian or bisexual women. I'm choosing to go in at the Lambda level, for a start, requiring me to read four GLBT books in 2010. Likely I can do more, but I want to actually finish my challenges in the coming year. Most of my choices likely will come out of the Virago Modern Classics, and thus, most will be late-19th and early-20th c. choices.