The Condition

No one creates more believable, true-to-life characters in their fiction than Jennifer Haigh. Period. And I am a stone cold fan of character driven novels. Which is why I have worked my way steadily through Haigh's complete oeuvre, although not in the order they were published. THE CONDITION (2008) is the sixth Haigh novel I've read, and its characters - and their story - are simply outstanding. Frank and Paulette McKotch and their three children - Billy, Gwen and Scott - all suffer from their own particular "conditions," which, in the end, amount to nothing more than the human condition. Frank is a successful scientist and academic workaholic at MIT who hails from the coal fields of Pennsylvania, and has worked his way up from the show more bottom. (His character represents a tenuous tie to Haigh's other works about the town and people of Bakerton, that began with BAKER TOWERS.) He has "married up." Paulette is from a blueblood Boston family whose fortunes have been frittered away one generation at a time. The family implodes in 1976 when they learn of thirteen year-old Gwen's "condition" - Turner syndrome, which inhibits normal growth, puberty and maturation. Twenty years later we see how the family has splintered and changed, and follow their separate fortunes. I hesitate to say any more, just because I don't want to spoil it for any other readers who love great CHARACTERS. I can't stop thinking about the McKotch family. They are all just THAT real. I LOVED this book! One more Haigh novel left to read. Must find a copy of MRS. KIMBLE. (And I hope there's another one coming soon.) My very highest recommendation.

- Tim Bazzett, author of the memoir, BOOKLOVER show less

One summer in New England, an extended family reunites for another season, but this one will be anything but typical. This is the last summer they will share as a family. This is the year that Gwen, their late-blooming daughter, would be diagnosed with Turner's Syndrome - freezing her for all time on the cusp of womanhood. Though Gwen's condition is the most obvious, all the characters are struggling with their own personal issues and over the course of twenty years, these will be discussed and brought to light.

Wow! I really enjoyed this book. This is the generational story of a family before and after the divorce of the parents. Various chapters switch between the POVs of the family members. Usually, with a narrative style like this, show more I tend to have characters I like and characters I don't. Not so in this tale. I found each of the perspectives fascinating, and though each character had their flaws, I empathized with them all. By the end of the book, these people felt like family. I knew them intimately and still loved them despite their shortcomings and betrayals. Beautifully written and masterfully told. show less

An extremely engaging read about the defenses that we have to protect us when dealing with others. It is ultimately about each person's condition -- the bits of them that keep them from being completely fulfilled and the fundamental weaknesses that define personalities.

Simultaneous to the extremely moving emotional story is an extremely well-researched scientific one. In my career I have met several girls & women with Turner's syndrome & every bit of Gwen's story rang true. Similarly, I have met several scientists and doctors & the personalities of Billy and Frank and the details of their professional lives down to the minutia was done sincerely. Each character is well-rounded, likeable, flawed and ultimately believable, which is the show more true strength of the novel. show less

This is the second novel by Jennifer Haigh that I've read and I'm a fan. Her characters (in this case a family that fell apart in the 70s, now living dysfunctional lives in the 90s) are quirky enough to be entertaining, but grounded enough to be believable.

"The Condition" refers to Turner's Syndrome, which the only daughter of the family has. As an adult, she is child-sized, undeveloped physically, and in many ways, undeveloped emotionally. Her two brothers feel their lives have been warped by their parents' reactions to her condition and the subsequent demise of their marriage.

This may sound like heavy subject matter, and in some ways it is, but Haigh manages to keep it fresh and riveting.

As a woman who has Turners Syndrome and has dealt with it her entire life (I was diagnosed at age 3), I felt compelled to read this book. I have to admit, I was expecting there to be large inaccuracies in the portrayal of a woman living with Turners Syndrome. I have to say, I pleasantly surprised.

While some aspects were a bit exaggerated, I found myself very much identifying with Gwen. The scene describing her reaction and feelings when being compared to her cousin (who happened to be near in age) could have been taken from my childhood.

In addition, I can completely understand her desire to "find" herself in the Caribbean. I went through something similar myself. In addition, it seems as though others are more concerned about her show more condition than she is. It is the same for me. There are many, many times when I've become downright angry that our society literally treats short stature as a disease.

Overall, a very good book. You won't find clinical discussions of Turners Syndrome, but the information is as accurate as can be expected in a work of fiction written by a writer who does not have TS. show less

I read The Condition in short spurts on the cardio machine, which is a difficult way to read a novel, but Ms. Haigh's story pulled me so that I almost forgot I was working out.

It's the story of a family that already has cracks beneath the surface before Gwen's condition (Turner's syndrome) determines the course of their lives. In a true dysfunctional manner, everyone develops behavior in response to her condition, each reacting off the others' behavior.

The story follows each of the children into adulthood and circles back to follow the parents, Frank and Paulette.

I felt the struggle of each person to find her/his place in the world and to come to terms with the wounds and misunderstandings of the past.

Ms. Haigh's prose is fluid, and show more captivating in every way and her characters come to life so that I closed the book feeling as if they were part of my family. show less

The privileged McKotch family watches their world fall apart when their young daughter is diagnosed with Turner's Syndrome. As fascinating as the diagnosis aspect of this novel is, watching Gwen as an adult grappling with her disease is really the heart of this novel. Gwen is much more than a woman with Turner's; she is a fully rounded character with her own desires and a will strong enough to withstand her family's many intrusions.

I badly wanted to read this book when I first read the reviews, but I loved it much more than I ever expected to. This is an absolutely perfect novel about "the condition" of one girl, one family, and all of us. Jennifer Haigh will amaze.