Audience: Mature Audiences, 15+
Genre: General Fiction
Topics of Focus: Life Struggles, Mental Illness, Coming of Age, Emotional Liberation, Self Discovery, Women
Red Flags: Drug Use, Profanity, Sexual Intercourse & Assault, Suicide Attempt, Abuse, Abortion
Award-winning author Wally Lamb begins his writing career on a serious note with his emotional first novel, She’s Come Undone. From ages 4 to 40, this tale follows the difficult life of Dolores Price. Her story starts in 1956, when her family receives the Emerson television set that would soon cause her life to unravel.
Shortly after receiving the TV, Dolores’s handsome, but immature, father leaves the family. And so begins a series of devastating events. For support, Dolores and her mother move into the uptight home of her Catholic grandmother in Rhode Island. Here Dolores meets a family of characters that would force her to bid her childhood goodbye. The wise-mouthed, yet wounded, girl comforts herself with food and television. By the time young adulthood rolls around, Dolores is 257 pounds, and life is no kinder to her. Determined to rise above her experiences, she struggles through her unbelievably rocky life and pushes onward toward self-discovery and healing.
Though this story brings forth a pinch of hope for Dolores, her painful experiences may drag the reader down with her. Her dismal attitude may also be off-putting and dislikeable. Therefore, for those who are looking for a light, comical, or one-dimensional read, this novel is not recommended.
Still, for as dark as She’s Come Undone may be at times, it remains a fascinating read that will interest select readers. The tale portrays such intimate and relatable moments as a woman, so personal that it comes as a surprise that the author is male. Nevertheless, Dolores’s struggles are universal, something every gender can all make connections to.
Annotation by Anna Zine
No comments:
Post a Comment