Bedrock

An earlier Lisa Alther character, Ginny Babcock in "Kinflicks", once described herself as "The Emma Bovary of Stark's Bog", and Clea Shawn, the central figure of "Bedrock", also has much in common with Flaubert's heroine. Indeed, she can be diagnosed as a sufferer from what in French would be called "le Bovarysme"- a state of restless discontent coupled with a firm belief that the next major development in one's life, whatever it may be, will bring lasting happiness and cure one's discontent for ever. Clea is a successful, middle-aged art-photographer, married to a wealthy New York business executive and the mother of two children, both students at university. She and her husband Turner have an "open marriage" which allows them to conduct affairs with other parties, and Clea has thrown herself passionately into a number of such relationships in a vain attempt to find a greater intimacy than she enjoys with her husband. Neither wealth, success in her career nor her other lovers, however, have brought Clea much happiness, and she is continually in search of something that will bring her the satisfaction she craves. At the start of the book Clea has just fallen in love again. Not, this time, with a person but with a place- Roches Ridge, the small town in Vermont where she has (against her husband's wishes) bought a house as her rural retreat. Clea has an idealised view of small-town life as a peaceful retreat from a bustling, crime-ridden city like New York. It is, however, a standard literary cliché that the more idyllic and tranquil a small town appears on the surface, the more likely it is to prove to be a place of rampant corruption, raging hatreds and illicit sexual passions, and Roche's Ridge proves to be no exception. There are two distinct threads running through the book, one basically serious, the other basically comic. The serious thread concerns Clea herself, her attempts to find happiness and her relationships with those around her. The most important figure in her life is neither her husband (a remote figure who spends most of his time away from her on business trips abroad) nor any of the other men she takes as lovers but her closest female friend, Elke, a German-born sculptress. Clea and Elke are contrasting characters. Both are discontented, but only Clea looks for a cure for discontent. Whereas Clea is an eternal optimist, persuaded that every change in her life, be it a new love affair or the purchase of a rural property, will bring her the contentment that has hitherto eluded her, Elke is a pessimist, convinced that life is both cruel and meaningless and that happiness will forever elude her and the rest of humanity. Both see themselves as creative artists, but their attitude to art is as different as their attitude to life. Clea's photographs are deliberately composed to be aesthetically appealing, with anything sordid excluded, whereas Elke's sculptures focus on cruelty and suffering.The more serious scenes in the book generall

Ms. Alther's humor has always delighted me, and this book is another worthy achievement of hers. Woman of the world Clea Shawn decides to give up her lovers and travels, and seeks peace in a small town in New Hampshire. She surprisingly does adapt to little Roches Ridge although she is now physically separated from her husband, teenage children, and her female best friend.While I enjoyed the book I did find the whole thing a bit unsettling. The two plot lines of the novel clashed a bit. The part of the story dealing with the outlandish citizens of Roches Ridge -and believe me there is not a normal person in the whole town- is quite hilarious. The other theme, Clea's relations with her family, and, most importantly, with her best friend Elke provide us with a more serious story. Either plot would have made a decent novel in itself. It's good Alther, though. Highly recommended.