Customer Reviews

Having Everything

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

 

 

It's almost become a cliché, the story of the suburban man who has it all, but upon closer examination, has nothing. Such is the premise of "Having Everything," by John L'Heureux, a relaxed storyteller who never lets his tale wilt into predictable boredom. At 45, Philip Tate has just received a prestigious chair position in the psychology department at Harvard. Not-so-furtive whispers at university dinner parties say he's next in line to be dean. And his wife, what a beauty. Sure, she drinks too much, and she's got a stash in her shoe closet that would rival the stock of most pharmaceutical salesmen. But she's a gorgeous blonde and has produced two gorgeous children, who are sprouting their own successful careers. Although he's a psychiatric genius who specializes in manic depression, Philip can't seem to figure out what's wrong with his deathly depressed wife. She alternately loves and hates him. He can only stand by and watch her self-destruct. Such shattering revelations reawaken an old, dangerous habit in Philip. As a boy, he liked breaking in to his neighbors' houses. He never stole anything; he just liked the thrill and naughtiness of the deed. As a man - a man with seemingly everything - he goes thrill-seeking once again. What he finds is that his beautiful and smart friends are just as messed up as he and his family. L'Heureux is a subtle, character-driven writer in a time when the phrase "over-the-top" describes most of contemporary fiction. "Having Everything" is a deliberate read, not sexy but solid. L'Heureux, a college professor himself, tells these ironic tales with an insider's wit. Reading the book is a good reminder that a simple story is good enough; we needn't be subjected to a "tour de force" to be entertained.

Nothing is more fun than reading about other's problems and neuroses. Schaudenfreude aside, the characters here have great depth and the barbs they trade are worth the price of admission. L'Heureux's character gives new meaning to the phrase, "don't judge a book by its cover."

Unfortunately, the conclusion felt too neat -- too forced, particularly in the face of all of the events that "went down" throughout the course of the book......

What a find this novel turned out to be. I have read and admired several of L'Heureux's novels and short story collections. The prose is written with a poet's precision and the characters are developed with a minimum of words. I highly recommend this novel to anyone, particularly those readers who are tired of 700 page novels that go nowhere.

L'Heureux describes the characters so well, you feel by the end of the book that you really know them. The relationship of Maggie and Philip has you angry, sad, frustrated, and then happy for them. You are secretly hoping that they can figure it out as they nurse Maggie through her alcoholism. Hal's character is so real, you realize that you have met someone like him in real life, whether you know it or not. This book is suspenseful in a way, as it describes the relationships of two married couples, their problems in their marriages, and the problems that they deal with inside themselves. This book is a must read.

Having read many of L'Heureux's novels and stories quite a few years ago, I opened "Having Everything" eagerly. I was hugely disappointed. Sadly, I couldn't find a single redeeming quality in this book. The characters were not likable, even slightly interesting, or worth caring about. The story plods along, motivated by smoke and mirrors. Nothing really happens except a lot of driving around and getting loaded. Philip's big secret shame couldn't be more ridiculous, or boring. If this is supposed to be a satirical novel, it missed the mark by far. L'Heureux needs now to abandon that old adage "Write what you know." What he knows isn't much worth reading about.

The first two chapters of Having Everything are fascinating in their creation of situation. An illustrious Harvard professor has a dark side, cat burglar of his friends' homes just for the thrill. But the flavor of the academic atmosphere is inaccurate, the characters implausible. The academics don't seem to be academic. The scene set is more like you would see on a soap opera, the office where nobody works. All flirt and intrigue, and they might as well be anywhere. Most of the wives are stupid and alcoholic, self-pitying and whining. The evil guy is into S&M, finally doing himself in. The children touted as wonderful are prissy and self-righteous. There's plenty of homosexuality and there are enough accusations of child abuse to pander to the ain't it awful game of the politically correct. I couldn't wait to finish this book.