Off Keck Road

The story starts off being about Bea Maxwell but then veers away to take in other members on and off Keck Road. The character placement seems jumbled. New characters appear without clear introduction or connection to Bea. I felt I needed a chart to keep characters straight. However, character development was brilliant, intimate even. When we first meet Bea, she is a college girl, home on vacation in the 1950s. She has certain definable traits that stay with her throughout the rest of the novella, ending in the 1980s. It's a portrait of a woman who never leaves her small town. Her life never really takes her beyond Green Bay, Wisconsin's city limits without reeling her back in.

I had heard rave reviews about this book. It won the Faulkner Award finalist label; but I was disappointed! Along with being a hard read, I couldn't follow the characters. It took a while to determine who the main character was! Anyway, it follows Bea through her life in a small midwestern town. I should say, her BORING life. I could not see the point to this book and don't understand the award at all. (It was also a Talking Volumes Book)

Huh? How did this get on my list? None of my GR friends have enjoyed it, I've not read anything else by the author, the blurb says little that appeals... In any case, I read to p. 16 and already was totally confused by all the names and r'ships. It wasn't the first time she saw Keck Road" is a line that is adjacent to a person who grew up on Keck Road, so who's the She?, And that line is part of a scene in the school gym, so what's the It? Pfah."

I am giving this one 2 1/2 stars because I didn't dislike it, but I also didn't like it. I found it to be a strange book. I think the premise is to tell of the life and times of a particular street, and the people impacted by it. It seemed to be a little disjointed and lacked a good flow. Not really recommending this one.