Folly

In 1992, long before these times of clicking and buying books online with ease, I walked into a now-defunct bookstore and stumbled upon this "new arrival." From the first paragraph, it was clear that Susan Minot in "Folly" had broken entirely new ground as the very best American Literature had to offer. Although commonplace today, Minot grasped the simple fact that elegant and gorgeous prose flows with poetic ease when it is unencumbered by an author's obsession with gymnastics in delivering perfect grammar, punctuation, and the like. As a result, the book itself (along with the reader) is able to breathe in and enjoy the literary nuance of color, tone, music, and light - the likes of which few writers have ever mastered. Also, the themes embodied by her characters reach far beyond the female-as-victim of this-that-and-everything-else. Instead, the title "Folly" is the real story at its core. As Edna St. Vincent Millay wrote (paraphrasing here) the tragedy of any life can be that one can ultimately become...the booth where folly holds its fair.

Susan Minot's prose is so lyrical, so musical and rapturous, it's a wonder one can pay attention to the story.Folly, however, IS a story, one that harkens back to memories of The Awakening, Yellow Wallpaper, and other stories of women trapped in imperfect, unfulfilling marriages during an era when even to admit such a thought could lead to one's downfall. When forced to make a choice, Lillian's world opens to self-discovery. Folly is an elegant examination of the inner workings of the heart of a woman.

"Folly" by Susan Minot is a wonderfully written tale of a woman's choice in a time when a woman's marriage is everything. This tale of heartbreak and intrigue is fabulous. I was fascinated by this decision a wonderfully charismatic woman must make. It has a tremendous amount of charm and heart. It's very well written with a lot of emotion and power. There are moments of "The Age of Innocence" by Edith Wharton (which is a classic and can't be surpassed) but, this novel certainly has a lot going for it. I was very happy with my read. I recommend it.

Is it possible to write a tragicomedy of manners without descending into the literary equivalent of Merchant and Ivory territory? Susan Minot's Folly makes a courageous try, aided by a sparse, unemphatic prose style. Ms. Minot's prose style underscores the sharp contrast between the spare passages and her rare flights into extended fantasy or metaphor. The plot commences in 1917, leading us through a few decades in the life of a Boston well-to-do woman. The "real story", as so often is the case, is the effect of the social milieu upon all its denizens. Although in "social content" Folly brings to mind the novels of Edith Wharton, it must be said that Ms. Minot is unwilling to draw the simple solutions to the social issues she raises that Ms. Wharton might have painted two generations ago. No swift damnations come to those who people this novel merely as a result of their station, nor is easy salvation to be found in flight to a more "free" way of life. Instead, the story is laced with a pleasing ambiguity--perhaps an escape is possible, but the exits are not clearly marked."Literary fiction", that sad refugee of obscure collegiate publications, has evolved into a stylized genre no more aesthetically pleasing (and a good bit less entertaining) than, say, science fiction or a well-crafted mystery. Ms. Minot can justly be accused of writing a version of the "MFA litmag" novel, yet she shows the form is not without its virtues. The near-gamesmanship with which she crafts each sentence to achieve studied, quiet precision in her style and ideas makes this story eminently readable and in its own way quite evocative. One might not wish for the slow, gentle satire and complex despair of Folly in every novel one reads, but Folly is certainly worth the effort. Ms. Minot's work, though bearing the stigmata of "literary fiction", suggests that practitioners of this dour form can resurrect interest by placing precise execution of a worthwhile plot first, and saving the "cute" turns of phrase and wails of despair for the literary seminars. Although not everyone will like Folly, it is very satisfying for those who wish a "good read" with a modern sensibility.

Folly appeals to the mind, bringing a fresh way of approaching the importance of choosing a husband in 1920's Boston. Beautifully crafted, Lilian Eliot is a character that most women can identify with and charms more and more with every chapter