LibraryThing ARC - This book was not my usual fare. I requested it because I was familiar with the author from his science fiction and fantasy titles. Set during WWII, Four Freedoms follows the lives of several men and women working at a bomber factory in Oklahoma. Good characters and engaging stories, but not really my cup of tea. ( )

Ten years ago, on a trip by train to Halifax, I took along John Crowley’s classic fantasy novel, Little, Big, to read along the way. That ten years later I still haven’t finished it—life got in the way shortly after the trip, and I never picked it up again—is more a reflection on my sticktoitness than on Crowley’s abilities as a writer or in weaving a compelling tale.

Flash forward to this year, and I receive in April an advance copy of his latest, Four Freedoms, which takes me until last night to finish. And though it took me six months to work my way through it, it’s a compelling read. Life, once again, got in the way.

Four Freedoms takes its title from the goals articulated by FDR in 1941, which, in turn, became themes for four of Norman Rockwell’s paintings in 1943: freedom of speech; freedom of religion; freedom from want; freedom from fear. Crowley does not hew closely to these freedoms over the course of the novel; rather, he looks at how the Second World War brought an unprecedented level of freedom to his characters, brought together in a makeshift city in Oklahoma to construct the (fictional) B-30 bomber.

This is a novel of the home front: his characters are mainly women whose lives are awakened by the opportunity to work in the Van Damme factory, but the keystone character is Prosper Olander, a disabled man whose life story is told in the greatest detail, and whose relationship with women knits the tale together. Told mostly in flashback, we discover who these people are largely as Prosper encounters them.

It’s a subtle book, which is probably why it was so easy for me to put down over the past six months, but a meaningful one—even if, from a purely plot perspective, not much happens: they coalesce in Oklahoma to build a bomber; they disperse at the end of the war. Poof. Which says something too.

The novel rings true in terms of its atmosphere; Crowley's done his homework. And his characters are vivid and sympathetic. Worth reading. ( )

This wasn't my favorite work by Crowley. While the setting was very real, due in large part to the attention to detail other reviewers have noted, I struggled to connect with any of the characters or their motivations. However, the novel is well written and I can acknowledge that the failings here are mine and not any flaw in the story and how it is told. ( )

It took me forever to finish this book. During the time I was reading it, I read three other John Crowley novels that make up the omnibus Otherwise. I can't put my finger on why I didn't engage with Four Freedoms in the same way I have engaged with Crowley's other work. The story and setting in Four Freedoms are interesting, and the writing is superb. The way the plot was structured put me off, though. Major characters appear halfway through the book and then take over the storyline for a few chapters, which creates a disjointed effect. And as the New York Times Book Review pointed out in an otherwise very positive review, the story doesn't have a satisfactory ending (though I disagree with the reviewer's assertion that this is a feature of Crowley's work in general). On the other hand, the period details and the characters themselves are well-drawn and fun to get to know. Ultimately, this might be considered a writer's novel. Nevertheless, I look forward to Crowley's next. ( )

The story of a handicapped man’s life before and during WWII doesn’t sound like something I’d normally read, but John Crowley is a good enough writer that I ended up quite liking this book. While I might quibble with some of his structural choices, the prose, atmosphere, characters and voice were all great. ( )