The Bright Forever is an interesting book because I am not sure if I liked it or not. It is well written and a compelling read, but I felt, after reading some chapters, as if I needed a shower.
There is a premise here that no matter what we think we know, our friends and neighbors are unknowable in their deepest dark heart of hearts. I can certainly buy into that. But there is a sordid quality to these characters that kind of made me cringe sometimes and I guess I believe better of people. Maybe that's the thing for me, as much as I like serial killer novels and there ilk, Martin's book was so realistic that it was hard to take at times.
It is set in a small town in Indiana where everyone would say they know one another very well. Then a little nine year old girl from the town's most prominent family goes missing. The novel jumps between points of view, from an odd bachelor math teacher to the brother of the missing girl to the wife of the most likely suspect. These are people who could live down the block from you. I kept thinking of the Beetles' song, All the Lonely People and Elinor Rigby who kept her face in a jar by the door. I think that gives you an idea of the tone of this novel.
I am not against reading the end of a novel early on to make sure that the characters that I like are still alive. I know, I know, to some of you that is a sin, but it doesn't spoil a book for me. That said, I would never tell the end of a book to someone who might read it. All I can say then is that the end of this book surprised me and I think that this book will stick with me for a long time because of the end.
My recommendation is to get this book if you have kind of a strong stomach. If you are looking for a book group selection, I think this would be great. My group will be talking about it in a couple of weeks.
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3 comments:
Thanks for stopping by my blog. This one looks interesting. You'll have to let us know how your book group discussion goes.
Hi. My book club is currently reading this title & I came across your blog during a google search for other readers. I agree with you, the characters are very "real"--almost too real sometimes. It's hard to come to terms with the idea that people like this do live in cities and towns near us. Perhaps too close for comfort?
The reason the characters seem almost too real is because they ARE real. I just finished this book and I can't decide if I loved it or hated it. I turned the pages with growing disbelief as one of the horrors of my childhood unfolded on the pages. This story is basically not fiction! Lee Martin grew up in a small town about 10 miles from where this actual kidnapping took place in 1972. The details of the story are nearly identical--the bicycle, the library, the affluent family, even the ugly truck and the drug-addled perpetrator. He barely even changed the names of the family or the victim. I am floored at how little of the original story he changed and yet never once that I have seen has he credited or even offered condolences to the family in my hometown who lived this tragedy. This kidnapping shook our town to the core and changed the way we looked at each other forever. I appreciate his writing, and I suppose his insights into the thoughts of the characters allow him to call it fiction, but I can't believe that the truth of his "fiction" has not yet come to light. Perhaps this isn't an issue to anyone else in the world, but to the family of this little girl, and her friends and neighbors who lived the agony of her disappearance and murder, Mr. Lee at least owes an acknowledgement.
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