Customer Reviews

Fragile Beasts: A Novel

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4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
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I'll admit: sometimes I am a little arrogant about finding authors who shine well before the general public does. When the author finally receives the accolades they deserve, I sit back, chest puffed up a bit, and think " Ah, I knew you when"..
I do not write reviews, I have only written 2 before this. One for Dennis Lehane's "Any Given Day" and Richard Russo's " Bridge of Sighs" I only write them when I feel I have to. I have to now.
As all of O'Dell's previous works, this is just a remarkable story. You can read the synopsis of Fragile Beasts on other reviews. I am not overly comfortable describing novels "Innards" to other folks. I just want people to read Tawni O'Dell.

I purchased, and read Back Roads well before Oprah did. I knew then that this writer was special. It is years later, and I still remember the novel vividly. Her second novel, Coal Run, while quieter than Back Roads was just so lovely. I don't know what it is about O'Dell that captures me so. I appreciate and demand good writing, and she delivers beautiful prose in all of her work. She is clever and raw, and a masterful storyteller. Her third outing, Sister Mine, was near perfection. O'Dell had it all in that book. Mother love, romantic love, sibling...love, a mystery, a yummy coalminer and plenty of humor.

She manages, in her last effort, to bring levity in just when she needs to. She is so intuitive on how deep to go, before sprinkling some comedic touches that shine. Fragile Beasts, for me, is my favorite novels of hers to date. It has something for everyone. I savored this book. I inhaled it. I fell in love with a Matador, a pair of adolescent boys, an aging wealthy matriarch, and a bull. I really haven't found an author in the last decade or so who moves me and pleases me on every level in my "world of books" than Tawni O'Dell.

I envy all of you readers who get to find her. She is dazzling.

I had not intended to read this book in one day, but I couldn't stop myself. Once again, Tawni O'Dell has created wonderfully rich, complicated characters in whom I felt deeply emotionally invested by the time I had finished the first few chapters. As in her previous novels, she captures the culture of Western PA (where I grew up) so exactly, and her portrayal of the contrasts between the working class and the affluent are spot on and often hilarious. In Fragile Beasts, O'Dell has expanded the cultural and geographic horizons of her story and this novel is all the richer for it. I was delighted to find myself immersed in the beautiful language and culture of Spain (particularly the bull fighting traditions) as seen through the eyes and hearts of her characters, Candace Jack (a native of PA) and the transplanted Spaniard, Luis. She explores the cultural contrasts between Spain and the U.S. with great clarity and insight and these add even more fascinating layers to her well-developed characters.

In her story telling, O'Dell often makes insightful commentary on social inequalities and injustices. Her heroes and heroines are often deeply wounded, imperfect people who are struggling to overcome trauma and loss and are not exactly people whose lives you might want to experience. This isn't light reading and she is not afraid to the take her readers on a ride of emotional extremes where a character's dark side can leave you feeling downright queasy or outraged. But she also has a gift for illustrating that it's not what happens to you that matters, but what you choose to do with it, and although there are certainly some dark themes in this novel, there is also a great deal of warmth, humor and courage. I was alternately laughing out loud at times and reaching for the Kleenex at others.

Bursting into laughter while in the middle of a good cry is something I have experienced only a few times in my life and never has an author been able to take me to both of those emotional extremes at the same time, until now. This was a very rewarding read.

Fragile Beasts opens with the death of Candace Jack's true love. He is gored by a bull in the opening pages, and then throughout the book we are transported between Spain and the coal country of Pennsylvania. In Pennsylvania we meet Kyle and Klint, two teenage boys who are adrift after having lost their father in a drunk driving accident. How these three meet and manage to find a way to help each other makes for an utterly compelling read. These are all damaged people and Ms. O'Dells touching portrayal of their struggles to come to grips with their pasts and their futures is excellent. She has created some truly memorable characters here, but Candace Jack rules the stage. She is a woman who is larger than life in her small town and it is only gradually that we discover that she has placed herself in a prison since her true loves death, and it is only upon the arrival of Klint and Kyle and her desire to help them escape the opressive environment of their town and their upbringing that she also sees an escape for herself.

The culture of Spain and the art of bullfighting play a huge role in this story and they add a welcome exotic element to the story. Ms. O'Dell does a wonderful job of conjuring the beauty of Spain, the drama of the bullfight ring and the terrible beauty of a Pennsylvania coal town. I truly hope this story finds its way to the big screen; it is truly epic in scope. She invokes such powerful images; I really felt I was there.

This is a great read filled with great characters, great scenery, and a fabulous, well paced plot. I thoroughly enjoyed it and would recommend it to anyone who is a fan of literary fiction. I am a fan of this author and her latest effort did not disappoint!

"Fragile Beasts" is a raw and dazzling story of passion and timeless wisdom. This story is told from the perspective of three narrators: Candace, Kyle, and Luis. The characters are rich with insight as reflected in their authentic voices and profound self-reflections. The prose is exquisite.

Candace is damned and divine. Beneath her seemingly pallid life as an aging recluse, she harbors a grim catalog of buried grief and unspeakable loss. The death of her true love and the remnants of her happy days under the splendid Spanish sun are so deeply engraved in her wounded heart that she cannot achieve closure by ordinary means.

Candace leads a forlorn existence until she decides to take the fatherless teenagers Kyle and Klint under her wings. Beneath Klint's suppressed anger and Kyle's eagerness to please, Candace senses the scent of wounds. As their turbulent relationships unfold, each character navigates through their own uncharted emotional territory. Candace finds herself willing to provide Kyle and Klint with necessities beyond the tangible: she provides them with the type of redemptive, nurturing, and patient love that damaged individuals need in order to heal. In the process, Candace opens up to the outer world of sunlight in a new way. There is such joy in realizing that rapprochement is possible, that it still exists after so many years of deprivation and frozen grief.

The emotional intensity that culminates throughout the novel synchronizes with the ending in a manner that is devastating yet pitch perfect. This is not one of those feel-good novels anyway: as Manuel's nephew points out in his letter to Candace, the beauty of life lies not in its ending but in the grace with which the battle is waged. I have read thousands of books over the years, but not a single one has shaken me the way this one did.

I am a person who loves reading and is never seen without a book in hand. But lately having a hard time finding a book that makes me immense in the characters so vividly as Fragile beast.
Feel in love with the book, the matriarch Candance, the two very complex teenagers- kyle and Klint, the spainard Luis who now considers PA his home even the bulls and the bullfight.
I blame this book for lot of sleepless nights and resulting undereye dark circles but I also credit it to give me a good read- a book that made me smile and cry at the same time.Fragile Beasts: A Novel

I'm not great at writing long dialogues about the items that I choose to review, however I simply wanted to say how much I loved this story - my only frustration being, as someone else noted, that the story came to an end...I simply could not put this book down, reading it in just a few days in between my work and family obligations. I love that Tawni does not write about 'perfect' life and perfect family situations...I think that regardless of the differences in the lives of the characters to my own life, there were many things that I could relate to...not the experiences themselves, but of the feelings, the emotions...Regardless of knowing the actual storyline, Tawni O'Dell is an author whose books I would choose to read without a doubt...she has pulled me in and I'm here to stay for a little bit yet...

I am a fan of the author's work. Her writing moves me and she brings central Pennsylvania to life on the page (or Kindle screen) in a way unlike no other. This book did not immediately grab me the way her other books did but after I read the final page, I realized that in spite of that -- this is now my favorite of all of her books.

As an avid reader, I spent some time reflecting on what it was about the book that gave me this feeling. Chapters or sections of the book are told from the perspectives of three characters in the book -- a literary device I enjoy. I am a fast reader and even though each section has a heading with the character's name on it, at the beginning (before the characters were familiar to me as the reader) I found myself a bit confused as to who was speaking. In my humble opinion, this observation should in no way prevent any reader from experiencing a great novel that is a really amazing story about love -- which is often messy and complicated.

Thank you, Tawni. I always look forward to reading your books.

I ordered this book only because it was free at the time, and just loved it! I loved the insight into what bullfighting is to Spain and what the bulls themselves are like, even though I hate bull fighting. I loved the love story of the young American and the matador even though it ended so tragically. I loved how the advent of two disturbed adolescents into the life of the aging heroine enriched her final years as she helped them salvage their young lives. I enjoyed all the characters and loved her writing. I can't wait to read my next Odell book.

Jane J. F.

This is a new to me author and one that I will definitely put on my favorites list.

Well written, with an intriguing story line and well developed characters, I could not put it down.

I am looking forward to reading her earlier books as soon as possible. Highly recommend this enjoyable story.

I agree with the other reviewer who said this is her best work. Every novel just keeps getting better. It is such a moving and touching story. The characters are real and how amazing to blend both Spanish culture and bullfighting with Western PA coal mines? Mesmerizing. Had me guessing until the end. Stunning work.