Goldengrove

A Novel

By: Francine Prose

Narrated by: Mamie Gummer

“With a dazzling mix of directness and metaphor, Prose captures the centrifugal and isolating force of grief. . . . “[Goldengrove is] a moving meditation on how, out of the painful passing of innocence and youth, sexuality and identity can miraculously emerge.” — Los Angeles Times

An emotionally powerful novel about adolescent love and loss from Francine Prose, the New York Times bestselling author of Reading Like a Writer and A Changed Man.

After the sudden death of her beloved older sister, thirteen-year-old Nico finds her life on New England's idyllic Mirror Lake irrevocably altered. Left alone to grope toward understanding, she falls into a seductive, dangerous relationship with her sister's boyfriend. Over one haunted summer, Nico faces that life-changing moment when children realize their parents can no longer help them as she experiences the mystery of loss and recovery. Still, for all the darkness at its heart, Goldengrove is radiant with the lightness of summer and charged by the restless sexual tension of adolescence.

So-so

Gummer is a very good reader, and has a very pleasant voice – hopefully she’ll do some more challenging/pithy material. This is a bit superficial/light for a story about grieving, & not just because it’s told from an early teen point of view. The writing is nothing special. SPOILER; the most interesting character dies at the beginning. PS Life is way too short for bad ice cream!