Loved The Gustav Sonata. Subtle, progressive, and rich. I checked it out after seeing it in your feed. Also familiar with Jami Attenberg, but….As I really enjoyed The Middlesteins, I recently dived into her memoir and two other novels and just liked her writing (or maybe just her) less and less as a result. She seems to have a stable of essentially recurring characters (e.g., a single woman who is not a fan of children, a smart but very difficult mother), a regular rotation of settings (NY, LA, NOLA or nearby, and Chicago), and a surfeit of drinking, drugging, and sex with virtual strangers—the behaviors being the ones for which I always hope to see consequences. Her range just feels limited. I wished I’d quit at The Middlesteins, but now I know! Cheers, Love!
Thank you for this thoughtful comment! I love hearing your insights 💕 and good to know re: Attenberg’s books… I was going to read the middle steins soon, but the plot does seem v similar so may need more of a break.
Loved The Gustav Sonata. Subtle, progressive, and rich. I checked it out after seeing it in your feed. Also familiar with Jami Attenberg, but….As I really enjoyed The Middlesteins, I recently dived into her memoir and two other novels and just liked her writing (or maybe just her) less and less as a result. She seems to have a stable of essentially recurring characters (e.g., a single woman who is not a fan of children, a smart but very difficult mother), a regular rotation of settings (NY, LA, NOLA or nearby, and Chicago), and a surfeit of drinking, drugging, and sex with virtual strangers—the behaviors being the ones for which I always hope to see consequences. Her range just feels limited. I wished I’d quit at The Middlesteins, but now I know! Cheers, Love!
Thank you for this thoughtful comment! I love hearing your insights 💕 and good to know re: Attenberg’s books… I was going to read the middle steins soon, but the plot does seem v similar so may need more of a break.
I love stories set in Switzerland so I’ll put The Gustav Sonata on my list.