Customer Reviews

Before and After

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

 

 

Brown says, "I take very seriously the idea that novelists raise questions and don't necessarily answer them," and that "Novels are where we learn what it feels like to be someone else, where we learn to be patient with ways of looking at things that are not our own." (These quotes are from an interesting overview of the writer at ..., which is a great source for all sorts of literary stuff.) I think that some of the readers on this page need to keep this approach in mind before dismissing the book because they don't like the characters. I think Brown would say they're missing the point.

What was most notable about this book to me was that the situation is so ghastly, you can't imagine how you'd deal with it. I liked the way the main characters reacted so differently, and that the father did something that seems as terrible as the son, and yet, while you want to slap him and tell him to snap the hell out of it, you have to recognize the emotional truth of his reaction. Some readers seem to want a clear-cut resolution, but to do so would immeasurably flatten the book and diminish the power of the story. For instance, in writing off the son as an irredeemable creep while lauding the daughter's characterization, readers are ignoring her loyalty to her brother, which clearly doesn't spring out of a vacuum.

The characters are extremely flawed and complex, and they get into your brain. You may want to hug them or shake them or yell at them, but whatever your reaction, they seem incredibly alive. Brown's a poet, and some of her descriptions are beautiful if a fair amount of the dialogue, particularly early on, isn't esp. natural; small price to pay for some of the lines, which are beautiful, simple, and true. Good book, and a fast read as it's extremely compelling.

Unfortunately, many reviewers don't seem to realise that the review is for how good the book is, not whether or not you like the family that in this case are the main characters. Just because a book challenges what you think of life or moves you (even negatively) does not mean it is a bad book. In fact that is quite often criteria for a good book. Some people seem to be too stuck in their ways to appreciate this great novel.

When Jacob Reiser, a teenager in New Hampshire, kills his girlfriend, his parents Ben and Carolyn are forced to think about their values and their morals as well as their relationship. They would like things to go back to the way they'd been before the murder, but it can't be. This story grabbed me and held me.

This book was thoroughly engaging in terms of how each character tried to deal with such a horrific event. I think that if I ever had a child who committed such a crime I'd probably want to protect him or her as much as possible too. It is interesting to see how each character decided what was the "right" thing to do. Perhaps it would have been nice if the parents had tried to discuss the "wrongness" of what he did with him. However, nothing they can say or do can bring that girl back and all the talk (in previous reviews) about wanting to see the son are warranted, but seem very extreme. The section with the "molestation" has been overly emphasized in previous reviews. In my humble opinion, that was nothing more than a curiosity explored and was fairly non-sexual. This isn't the most exciting and fast paced book, but is worth a read just to hear Brown's excellent use of language.

I found it very thought provoking. Just how far would I be willing to go to protect my child in similar circumstances? I felt the characters were very believable and their actions and reactions in character. I thought the device of telling the story from the point of view of different characters to be an interesting one. If you have ever had a child in trouble - even a little bit - and have wondered about whether you were handling the situation correctly, I can't imagine that you would not be caught up by the dilemmas presented in this book.

I was looking forward to reading this book. I felt the story had great potential but the overanalysis of the character's thoughts and feelings slowed the book down. I didn't care enough about any of the characters. A real bummer!

The plot of is simple, like its title, "Before and After." Into the stable routine of an affluent happy family drops a bombshell which rips them asunder and throws them together. Carolyn and Ben Reiser's 17-year-old son, Jacob, is accused of a brutal murder.

Chapters alternating between Ben, Carolyn and their pre-adolescent daughter, Judith, explore their reactions and, through memory, yearn for the way life had been.

Brown's themes are anything but simple. Love is central but around it swirl murky questions of alienation, moral choice, duty, forgiveness, good, evil and truth.

At first shock brings the Reisers together. New Yorkers transplanted to bucolic New Hampshire, they are instantly outsiders again. Jacob has vanished, leaving only questions. The future yawns like the unimaginable black hole. Hope -- kidnappers, maniacs -- is to be clung to.

Then time works its magic. Jacob's whereabouts still a mystery, Carolyn grows restless, considers returning to her work as a pediatrician. Ben, a man of action who destroyed evidence in Jacob's car without hesitation, recoils from thoughts of "normal" activities. Judith goes back to school and endures the taunts of her peers in silence. Tension simmers at the surface, obscuring darker roilings beneath.

Finally even the reader grows impatient. Get on with the story so they can go on -- somehow -- with their lives.

And, at last, Jacob is found. Ben, however miserable, is in his element, taking charge, wholly committed to his son. It's more difficult for Carolyn. She can't forget the murdered girl. She wonders how well she ever knew her son. Ben is passionate and focused, Carolyn is sensitive and tortured by the rigors of soul searching. Judith cleaves to a world where right and wrong are simple truths.

Brown's ("Civil Wars," "Tender Mercies") exploration of character is riveting. Her characters' memories and struggles seem as real as our own. Almost too real. Heart-wrenching truths cut close to the bone, leaving no room for the comfort of "It can't happen here."

One minor complaint -- New Hampshire has no death penalty and too much of the story depends, unnecessarily, on the fiction that it does. Life in prison is horror aplenty.

This is an exceptionally fast paced thriller with an unusual premise. The terror that the parents feel comes out at you through the pages. The absolute overwhelming horror that something has occured which will forever change the family life and nothing can be done to change what has occurred. The mother and father are well honed characters who let the reader know that sometimes really bad things happen to good people. If this book only reminds us how quickly your life can change, it is well worth the read.

I loved "Before and After!" I found the prose powerful and effective. I did not find that the author forced her point of view upon the reader, but rather that the characters took on rich and gripping lives of their own. By the way, the book is FAR superior to the movie, so I recommend skipping the flick and heading straight for the book.

I'm not sure when this was actually published, but i read the newly minted paperback. Surely over a decade. I was mesmerized by the prose that wrapped its' way around the slowly revealed facts and the viewpoints. The actual premise sickens me to think of it, even as my children could actually hurt someone. They are after all, Adults. Fabulous. Couldn't put it down. And now in my later life, nothing to compare to this (no death, but my work life is ruined)..... and I question....