Grief and Loss Fall Flat...You win again July

It has not been a good month for books in the Miss Elizabeth household. I've been traveling recently, so I decided to stir it up with a book on CD. I chose "The Year of Pleasures" by Elizabeth Berg. I'm a sucker for a cover (damn you shallowness!), and thought the book sounded sweet plus it was a short listen. Well I liked this better than some books, but still it did not phase me.

The book is about a grieving widow in her early 50s. She just lost her husband who was the love of her life and has now uprooted herself and moved to...Illinois? Anywho, she makes new friends, finds old friends, grieves her husband, and struggles with how to move on. The title is mentioned within the book by a character who says when she lost her daughter, she spent a year finding one thing a day that made her happy, something she enjoyed doing no matter how small. I love that idea, but I don't think the book earned this title.

What I think the author was going for was one of those, 'we just lost something dear, girls stick together, best friend, women' books. In my opinion, it didn't hit the mark.

The author tried too hard to describe simplicities like trees, shops, topography and after a while, it just felt phony like the writing of any student trying to be poetic. Stop with the figurative language and get to the meat! God knows I'm guilty of some of this behavior in my own writing, but I expect more from an author.

Something that annoyed me throughout the book was the main character, Betta's, attitude towards today's generations and technology. She stuck her nose up and was exasperated with any form of new fangeled technology. Whenever this was mentioned, she usually associated younger generations with the inability to love life beyond the internet. As a twenty-something, I resent the implication that I'm unable to socialize, enjoy just sitting, or the beauty of nature. I understand the point she makes about many people being dependant on technology and children missing out on activities because they're stuck in front of a screen, but sweeping generalizations are annoying and never apply to all.

The subject of the book, loss, grief, loneliness, is one that many can relate to and will resonate with most audiences, but I didn't feel it went anywhere new. It felt cliche. I did appreciate the underlying values of friendship and life even if I wasn't overly thrilled with the delivery. One line that hit home with me was, "how necessary the near presence of others in keeping me civilized and sane". For anyone who has ever lived alone or holed themself up for a period of time I think they can relate.

Again, this book did not strike a chord in me. The characters were underdeveloped and the plot points fell through. The author tried for deep and meaningful, Steel Magnolias-esque, but it didn't reach that level because I never felt a connection with the main character. There's not much more to be said about this book. Find something with more heart.