Story of a Marriage

Set in the smothering social and political confines of 1953,Pearlie-a black woman-has doubts about her husband, and is then visited by Buzz Drumer who claims he was her husbands lover from the war hospital and he wants him back and will pay Pearlie handsomely if she will let him go. To say anymore would spoil an excellent read. 'The Story of a Marriage' explores themes of love, war loss and sacrifice with great precision and to my mind ranks Greer alongside contemporary greats such as William Styron and Richard Ford. Another few books of this quality and he will cement his place. This has all the ingredients of a classic, and I will definately be reading Greers other works.

Overall, I found this to be a very thoughtful and beautifully written book. I enjoyed reading it and regretted reaching the end. For me, that's often the ultimate test of a book -- whether or not I'm sorry to say goodbye to the characters. I agree with others who have commented that the "gotcha" twists were a bit strained. There were a few passages where I found my mind wandering, or found myself growing a bit impatient for the action to pick up. Nevertheless, it is an interesting storyline and I found the characters to be well developed, despite the spare prose and the novel's relatively short length. I highly recommend this book to anyone who wants to be drawn into an interesting and thought-provoking story.

"Holland and I had talked about our friends and our childhoods and movies and books and politics--we had agreed and disagreed and had our fights and merry moments over a beer--but I think it's fair to say we had never spoken honestly in all ours lives." This quote from A Story of a Marriage by Andrew Sean Greer prettily sums up the story's central conflict. The narrator, Pearlie a young mother and wife to her high school sweetheart, Holland grapples with her marriage in 1950's San Francisco. She says, "I loved you like a field on fire," in reference to Holland, and yet her marriage and commitments are tested by the appearance of a dapper stranger. It does the novel a disservice to reveal any more about the plot, as its secrets are revealed in well timed waves. In fact the book's only draw back is its brevity as its simple prose endears readers page by page. It's an unconventional love story written with graceful restraint and vibrant characters. The Story of a Marriage is as perfect a novel as any I've read.

I first came across Andrew Sean Greer with The Confessions of Max Tivoli, which I loved, but I think I love this smaller novel of his even more. It's beautifully written. The writing is graceful and polished without being flashy, and the author has an ability to make the most meaningful, new phrases for feelings and insights that could easily be cliches in the hands of another writer. The depiction of life in the 50s of America, the complications of interracial love and same sex love and trying to make a life for yourself in a really oppressive conformist society, was more illuminating than a history course on the same subjects. I cared about these characters, even as they fumbled and hurt each other in the course of trying to achieve their heart's desires.

Loved the book, not at all what I expected. Many twist and turns in the plot, which keeps the reader's interest.When you complete the novel, you will have much to think about!