Sunday, November 14, 2010

12:27 PM - ,,,, No comments

The Stone Diaries by Carol Shields

This is the 102nd book that I have read in my quest to read the "1001 Books You Must Read before You Die". As an added bonus, it is on both the original list and the revised list published in 2010.

So do I think this is a book everyone should rea before they die? Alas I do not. The Stone Diaries is not a bad book, indeed it is a very respectable and somewhat entertaining book, but something about it left me a little depressed and unsatisfied.

The story is presents itself as the autobiography of one Daisy Goodwill born in Manitoba Canada soon to live through a century in which the role of women in society drastically changes. The fact that Daisy is not the only narrator, or even a completely trustworthy narrator is laid out for you very early on. This theme of "defining oneself" and how others define us and the reliability of narrative especially as it concerns ordinary women is hammered home almost to the point of nausea. In addition various women's themes are also pounded into the readers brain.

The reviewers of this book claim it transcends being simply women's fiction and makes a statement about humans in general. I must have missed that. I would have appreciated that. I am not generally a fan of women's fiction, possibly because I was born into a much more emancipated age for women, and therefore I often squirm when a book focuses much or most of its time on issues of women's rles and women defining themselves. I realize there is a place for these books, as well as a large audience that appreciates, but they are just not my cup of tea.

The other qualm I have with his book is an unfortunate jinx of timing. The end of the book deals with Daisy's decline - like so many adults in this day and age spent in an nursing facility, receiving various treatments as her quality of life declines. While I always find these themes sad, I found them particularly depressing and unsettling this time because I am currently dealing with the care of an elderly relative who is suffering from an unexpected and devastating malady. It was an unfortunate choice of book for me at this time.

So check another book off my list, but don't put it on your list of must-reads.

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