You know that Ray Charles song IF IT WASN’T FOR BAD LUCK?
Oh I tell everybody if it wasn’t for bad luck now now
I believe, I believe I would have no luck at all
I just wouldn’t have no luck at all
That’s pretty much the situation for Eva and her half sister Iris. Eva is 12 when her mother tells her that her father’s wife has died and it’s time for them to go see him. They get all spiffed up -Eva’s braids are so tight that they make her eyes slant up- and borrow the neighbor’s car. When they arrive, her father, Edgar, doesn’t exactly look pleased, but good manners assure that Eva and her mother are allowed inside. A beautiful girl of 16 or so eyes them warily and Edgar tells her that Eva is her sister and to take her upstairs while the adults talk. This is the last time that Eva sees her mother for nearly a decade. And then a bunch of stuff happens.
I just had a difficult time connecting with the characters in this book. It’s not that they were loathsome or boring or anything, it just felt to me that they never moved beyond their quirks that defined them. Eva was introverted and well-read. Iris was beautiful and a consummate actor. Edgar was all about appearances. Each of them and their makeshift extended family was disingenuous in their own way. The only character that I warmed to was Gus. The saving grace was that the story moved along at a nice pace, going back and forth in time, with several different perspectives and the writing was lovely. I’m curious about Ms. Bloom enough to seek out other works. Anyone have suggestions?
I really loved Away when I read it a few years back.