Customer Reviews

Marriage Of Anna Maye Potts: A Novel

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This is a great book in the tradition of Hardy, Zola, Norris and Dreiser. Alcoholism, adultery, violence and dialogue worthy of Chandler make this book a must-read for anyone interested in the American working-class experience. The power of the unspoken and even the unsayable is so strong between all these characters, but especially the two lead characters, who struggle under major personal burdens without whining about them. Reminds me of Cather, but also Carver, although a different milieu here. The only novel I've ever read where the protagonist in tough times is a woman working in a factory. No sugary ending -- you really wonder whether trouble is not as much ahead of these two as it was behind. Terrific piece of American realism, get it and read it.

The gritty realism and shattered lives of the characters here make this an outstanding debut novel. Henry delves deep into these mundane lives, slowly unearthing the humanity and complexity in characters exhausted by their day-to-day doldrums. This blue-collar odd-couple romance has zero by way of sap or senitment and was a genuine pleasure to read.