Customer Reviews

Absent a Miracle

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this book because of an interest in Nicaragua - which was certainly satisfied - but I ended up becoming totally entranced with the voice of Alice Fairweather, the narrator in search of a job (and a miracle?). While the lives of saints - hagiographies - have never been of interest to this non-Catholic, I grew to understand their pull on Alice and found her irreverent fascination was catching. ABSENT A MIRACLE takes you from a snowstorm in the Hudson Valley to the dim recesses of a NYC club for saint-lovers to a WASP-y wedding on the coast of Maine to a coffee farm in Nicaragua. Even as I watched Alice struggle with her obsessive love for Waldo, her inventor (and inventive) husband, I laughed out loud. Remarkably, in this large cast of characters, each one is unique, recognizable and engaging, from the small town mayor to the black sheep cousin to the Olga, the OCD sister. Read it for a trip to the tropics as well as interior voyage into the heart of a family

In this time of impending financial crisis, emotional malaise and seemingly insurmountable global problems, maybe we all need some miracles. Absent that, there is, happily, this hilariously entertaining book that gives the quest for the meaning of life a whole new itinerary. Alice Fairweather is either blessed or cursed with an insatiable curiosity and compassion almost to the point of sainthood. Her natural affinity to help others--and in the process possibly herself--leads her on a bizarre adventure brimming with eccentric and memorable characters, a divine education in female hagiography, rescue missions that would shame the good Samaritan, and finally, a much needed reconnection to faith and love. At a time where we are thirsting for novelty, wit, humor and a great story, Absent a Miracle hits the spot.

Christine makes literary swimming pools. The reader can start at one end and swim to the other, or get in first and get acquainted with the characters and story and then jump in and out. The mix of humor and information creates an on-going richness that doesn't stop. Read it as a novel, or as a series of colorful perfect snap shots. You never knew saints and Central America could be so wacky.

Horace Walpole once said that "the world is a tragedy for those who feel, but a comedy to those who think." Clearly, he could not have been acquainted with Christine Lehner's new novel, which is, at once, very clever and laugh-out-loud funny, and, at the same time, strangely moving and affecting. The novel's heroine, Alice Fairweather, is everywoman--smart, sensitive, struggling to hold down a job, keep a troubled marriage together, and be a good (and fun-loving) mom for her two children, and yet never taking her own problems (or those of her delightful dogs) so seriously that you pity her. An encounter with her husband's old college roommate leads Alice down life's rabbit hole and into a magical-realist wonderland of snowstorms, hospitals, hagiographers, coffee farms, and Nicaraguan politics. Lehner's gifts are such that she can take her reader pretty much anywhere. This delightful novel more than fulfills the promise of the entertaining short-story collection, What to Wear to See the Pope, and leaves this reader hungry to devour whatever Lehner conjures up next.

Absent a Miracle is really a modern, suburban comedy of manners. Lehner's way with dialogue is pitch-perfect, and laugh out loud funny. The delightful Alice Fairweather is still trying to find herself, as the kids, the wandering husband, the dabbling in radio, all fail to fully satisfy her formidable curiosity and energy. Alice reminds me of people I see in the supermarket, but maybe not -- we think we know the passions of people based on their day to day wanderings, but clearly we don't. Alice's detours to resolving her marital uncertainties were unpredictable, a little absurd, and thoroughly enjoyable.

One look at the cover tells you that this will be no ordinary story. From the first sentence, I was captivated by the world Christine Lehner has created with such subtle wit, clever and captivatingly unique characters, and keen eyed observations into the quirkiness of life and the places we are lead along the way. I have no idea whether the Publisher's Weekly Reviewer just dipped a toe into the pages or was distracted in such a way that he/she couldn't relax and enjoy the time it really takes to enter without an agenda other than to be entertained, but I disagree with their take on this wonderful novel. I found the the characters connected at the heart, the twists and delightful turns so refreshing, that I rationed the pages in an effort to make the experience last longer. You will meet people who are deftly brought to life without dusty cliches. And while their experiences may seem at times far afield from anything you may have known, you will be so glad you went with them as they manage this journey with the same curiosity, yearnings, needs, questions and heart common to us all. I laughed out loud and then found myself truly touched by the vulnerability and nobility of these wonderful characters. This is intelligent, fun, thoughtful and memorable reading. Put this miracle on your reading list!

I enjoyed the use of language in addition to the plot line of this book. The two young boys remind me of my own daughter who loves to keep her grade-school classmates (and teachers!) reaching for the dictionary. The topics of Sainthood, Catholicism and marital infidelity are woven together yet approached in a very secular and nonchalant way. Although the topic is very religious in nature the characters are clearly not church-going types. For the most part I enjoyed the book but was put off a bit by the nonchalant approach to moral issues. I guess life was a little too "real" for my tastes in some ways.

This book was a wacky trip. I enjoyed the use of language and the fractured plotline. It kept me reading just to see what would happen next. The infidelity was treated with nonchalance, very counter-intuitive, but refreshing. I enjoyed Alice's grudge-holding over many years toward the mistress of her husband. This is a reality for anyone who has been cheated on. Ms. Lehner is full of surprises and a wonderful command of the English language. I was going to recommend for my book club, but this book is a bit in left field for the mainstream audience. I, as a reader, enjoyed it.

I found the Alice Fairweather character just too trying for the first third of the book. She was too scattered and prone to non sequitors for my impatient straight ahead mind. I put the book down for several weeks and then when I resumed reading I came almost at once to truly enjoy it's energy. The virtuosic dialogue is filled with clever limericks and repartees which carry one along even when events seem ludicrous and out of control. Keeping the reader engaged through a totally wild chain of experiences involving childhood memories,family tensions, marital stress,employment stress, religion, coffee farming,banana republic politics, blizzards, and tropical storms, to name a few, is no easy feat. Lehner had me wishing for more by the end.

Absent a Miracle is a wonderful read. Christine Lehner writes in a quirky and unique voice, a voice that will interest you from the first page. Before you know it you will be drawn into Alice's world: her intriguing knowledge of saints, her desire to interpret other people's dreams, her quirky sons, and finally her somewhat haphazard attempt to help canonize the great-aunt of her husband's college roommate. Alice's two sons are charming characters, each with distinctive personalities. And the complex navigating of the marital morass between Alice and her husband, Waldo, adds further dimension to already rich and engaging story line. This book is a real page turner! Go ahead and enjoy it.