Antonya Nelson

The stories seem like they come from a quite bitter and jaded place. I really didn't care that Alan slammed his fast food tray with an empty styrofoam cup of chili into the trash can, nor that teen mom Maggie's baby cried in certain ways. Some authors try to court the "incisive and perceptive" crown so intently that their plots get bogged down by exasperatingly uninteresting details. (Not surprisingly, the plaudit on the back cover was written by the master of pointless, bitter details, show more Raymond Carver.) As the first line of the blurb points out, most of these stories are about crumbling or otherwise awkward marriages. show less

Antonya Nelson is best known for her short stories, but in this novel she uses the extra space to wonderful effect. This is a thoughtful, elliptical novel and the gentle pace may not grab all readers, which is a pity because this is a beautifully written, deeply insightful novel about the lives of three women in Kansas. Catherine is in her 40s, and married to much-Oliver, a vain and self-indulgent man on his third marriage, although one senses it may not be his last. Misty is Catherine's show more childhood friend, whose life diverged from Catherine's into more turbulent, and messier, waters. The book opens when Misty, with a dog in the back of the car, drives off a road to her death. Her daughter, Cattie is a teenager is 'willed' to Catherine and when she learns of her mother's death, skips out on her Eastern boarding school with $500 in her pocket, a rather dodgy travelling companion and a stray dog.

If you are looking for a page-turning plot, perhaps this isn't your book, because things happen slowly here, and apart from the intial car crash, without much violence, even though the BTK Killer hovers like a malevolent spirit in the background. Nelson's territory is interior and this is the landscape on which she works her considerable magic. Her focus shifts, at one moment bringing Catherine and Oliver's marriage into the spotlight, at another turning it onto Oliver's infidelities, or Cattie's journey . . . All flows together seamlessly, creating a vivid and intriguing portrait of these people's lives. On cannot help but think of Chekhov.

The story begins and ends with the dog from the back of Misty's car, and it is testment to the grace of Nelson's writing that this feels right and good and not a bit maudlin.

Settle in. Get a good cup of tea. Relax. Take your time and enjoy this terrific book. show less

I got this book from Library Thing's Early Reviewers program. I have no real quibbles with the book, except that it's largely forgettable. I read it in two days - the story certainly carries you along and the characters are well-drawn (which I understand is Antonya Nelson's forte). But it left me with more questions that I started with. And, well, I wanted something to HAPPEN. But, as a character study, it is a nicely done book, and well written. Just don't ask me what it was about a month show more from now... show less

Antonya Nelson's Bound is a frank look into the human condition, and into the ties that bind--some literally, some not. Her characters, while not wholly sympathetic, are realistic. Nelson has used her remarkable talents to make them multi-layered, three-dimensional, true to life. The broad message seems to be that we all suffer from some sort of post-traumatic stress disorder, and not every makes it out of that condition...for those who do, it can take years and still require a bit of show more additional shell-shock. But the deeper, more focused point Nelson seeks to make is that we need one another. The ties that bind may be painful. Obligations may sting. Requirements may hinder. But without those people and things to which we are bound, we can never get by. We can never be free.

Lauren Cartelli
www.theliterarygothamite.com show less