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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A beautiful novel of spare prose, July 18, 2005
This haunting novel describes in spare prose the long span of time that passes between the commission of a crime by Patty's husband, Tommy, and his release from prison many years later. Throughout it, Patty is the "good wife" indeed, nearly unwavering in her support for Tommy in the face of truly difficult circumstances. The graceful writing and moral dilemmas in this novel will stay with you long after finishing it.
O'Nan provides a totally convincing portrayal of a segment of society--the spouses, usually wives, of convicts--that goes almost completely ignored and neglected. This book is searing reminder that crimes harm not only the victims of the crime, who naturally deserve the bulk of our sympathy, but also the criminal's loved ones. Tommy's apparent lack of recognition of, and remorse for, the harm he has done to his wife and the child he was not around to raise is one of the most disturbing aspects of the novel. Patty WAS a good wife, and she deserved more gratitude from Tommy than she received.
What makes this novel deserving of 5 stars is not merely its story but the writing itself. In beautiful, spare prose O'Nan writes simply of the day to day complications of trying to get by as a single mother whose only hope for the future is at the far end of a 25-year sentence. Parts of Patty's life are described in detail, but in other parts of the book, entire years go by summarized in a phrase or a sentence. The tragedy of Patty's life is that entire years COULD be summarized in a sentence, and through his prose O'Nan communicates vividly the bleakness of a life placed far too long on hold.
Should Patty have stuck by Tommy? That's a hard question. You have to admire her perseverance and willingness to stand by her marriage vows and her love her for husband, although the subplot involving her attraction for another man suggests that, once again, Patty let her life be determined by the actions (or inactions) of others. Given slightly different chance encounters, her story very easily could have ended differently. In a way, I see her story not being one of loyalty but rather passivity...to Tommy, to a penal system that transferred her husband to a facility a day's drive away, to a fate that treated her badly. Patty may have been a good wife, but in the final analysis, the only person that benefited was Tommy. And you finish the novel feeling utterly sad about all the wasted lives involved.
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10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
What is the price of love?, August 24, 2005
And how much are you willing to pay? That is the question posed to Patty Dickerson, pregnant wife of Tommy. One night, Tommy and his friend are caught breaking into a home. Something goes horribly wrong, a woman ends up dead, and Patty's life starts in a downward spiral. Tommy is sentenced to prison, Patty has her baby and must find a way to survive not only financially but emotionally as well.
Things are bleak - she cant hold a job, money is non existent and Tommy is moved from prison to prison, making visitation tough.
I didn't feel that the novel was full of cliffhangers or suspense but I did want to continue reading till the end to see what would happen to Patty and Tommy. Would she stay or would she go? Would he ever get out of prison? I felt compelled to read till the end to find out although by the time I got there, some of the interest was gone.
The book jacket states that "The Good Wife illuminates a marriage and family tested to the limits of endurance." Thats for sure.
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13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
WHOEVER SAID THAT LIFE WAS FAIR?, April 21, 2005
Awaiting the birth of a first child ought to be a period of happy anticipation shared by husband and wife. And then, the actual birth should be a celebration with the new parents buoyed by the good wishes of family and friends. None of this proved true for Patty Dickerson, although she deserved it for she was not only a good wife but a good woman. However, as we're often reminded, bad things do happen to good people.
Stewart O'Nan has a gift for straight forward storytelling (The Night Country, Snow Angels). He doesn't need window dressing to create a novel that soon has the reader/listener totally involved with characters that remain with us long after the tale ends. "The Good Wife" is a prime example of the power of O'Nan's pen.
Patty is awakened in the dark of night with a phone call from her husband, Tommy. What he describes as some trouble is much more than that.- he's been involved in a series of robberies and now he has been arrested for murder. What follows is the suspense of a trial and then his incarceration.
There are, of course, visits to jail, but Patty is basically left to her own resources to earn a living and raise their son, Casey. This is not a happy story, simply an authentic one extremely well told.
Voice performer Laural Merlington does full justice to Patty who is both protagonist and narrator. At times stricken, at other times brave, always enduring, Merlington carries listeners through over a quarter of a century in Patty's life.
- Gail Cooke
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