Customer Reviews

Sacred Time: A Novel

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2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

I always read the Amazon book reviews but rarely write them myself. After reading the previous reviews, I feel compelled to voice another opinion on this book. Having read all of Hegi's work, I was eager to read her latest novel.Until the end of the first chapter, I was very disappointed. Being written from the point of view of a child, the ideas and writing seemd sophmoric and completely unlike the poetic and meaningful writing of Hegi's previous novels. The dramatic end of the 1st chapter changes all of that & signals the thrust of the rest of the book which is the life of a family as it moves through time from several of its members' points of view and how it is shaped & impacted by a tragedy. Hegi is a master of manipulating the tools of story telling and in her past novels she employs various interesting writing techniques to try to approximate the changing and often abstact nature of experiencing life. This book is no exception. She jumps ahead several years as she switches from chapter to chapter and to the point of view of another family member. Some things are made clear while much is left unsaid. This book does not proceed in an orderly fashion from event to event so it may unsettle some readers . But one of Hegi's greatest strengths is her abilty to portray the thoughts and emotions of her characters as a person really experiences them: in flashbacks,in snatches of rememberances, in emotional reactions. She is also very gifted at presenting a single happening from so many different points of view thereby really giving one a more complete understanding of an event's true impact. Reading Hegi is like looking at a character's family photo album and reading his/her journal. It is raw life stripped down to it's true nature & presented in a profound and poetic way. The point of this novel is the impact a single event can have on a family and its subsequent generations & how people are shaped by the forces of time, events and our interactions with one another. In order to capture such an unwieldy subject matter she has pared down her narrative to it's emotional essence. It's an absolutely beautiful novel. I have only a few pages left and I don't want it to end. If you are the type of person who enjoys looking at another person's family photos you will love this book. I cannot imagine having the genius to write this well.

Ursula Hegi opens her novel Sacred Time with deceptive simplicity: the first paragraph contains only one sentence, "That winter of 1953, stenciled glass-wax decorations appeared on nearly every window in the Bronx, and Uncle Malcolm was sent to jail for stealing stamps and office equipment from his last new job." The same bare elegance runs throughout, somehow creating a subtly complex and motivated story out of clear, uncomplicated prose. The novel has the impact that it does because Hegi selects the perfect words, constructs layers of rich atmosphere, and forces the reader to fill in not only sundry details, but major plot points as well--she tends not to finish one subplot until long after several new ones have started, which results in a novel that is truer to life than the books whose chapters each contain a perfect capsule of introduction, rising action, climax, and dénouement.
A novel that spans three generations and two continents could easily become stretched, with too few delightful specifics and too many underdeveloped story lines. Hegi does a good job, however, of making Sacred Time fill out its expansive framework, partly by letting all the stories grow naturally out of previously-recounted events. Her multiple narrators echo each other in their own words, and stories that are only hinted at in some chapters burst into full and satisfying bloom in later sections. By combining this intriguing structure with effortless prose and delicious details, Ursula Hegi creates in Sacred Time a novel that is as compelling as it is thought-provoking.
At under 250 pages, Sacred Time is a fairly quick read, but make sure to have some cannelloni or calzones on hand before you start, because it will be as hard to resist your cravings for the traditional Italian fare that appears throughout as it will be impossible to put the book down before reading the last, triumphant sentence.

I had to review this book because I could not believe how bad the customer ratings were. This was one of the best books I've had the pleasure to read all year and I think others should read it as well.

Please disregard the bad reviews and give it a try, it will be well worth your time.

What should a family do when its fabric has been irreparably torn by an unintended tragic accident? Should its members seek to forget and minimize the trauma caused by sudden loss? How can those who suffer from guilt face those who have rage boiling beneath an appearance of acceptance? Ursula Hegi tackles these issues in her compelling and important novel, "Sacred Time," a work which tracks one family's journey through fifty years of suppressed mourning, recrimination and remorse.

Hegi is at her best when she focuses on Anthony Amedeo, who is at the epicenter of tremors unleashed by a fatal accident which he innocently abetted during his Bronx childhood. "Marked and isolated" by his involvement in the accident, suffused with "dread and fear," Anthony's life has been marked by his conscious repudiation of wants. He has concluded that his childhood desire -- for his own space, his own toys, his own personality -- has caused his family to fracture. Confiding to his estranged wife as an adult, Anthony's characterization of himself as "the devil" encapsulates his self-hatred, his suspicion that life offers little to hope for and much to be afraid of.

The loss of his cousin is "one huge ripple -- a tidal wave, rather" that "seized" all the members of his family and "flung" them into a territory where there is "no common focus, only conflicting angles of vision, colliding and aligning" in a "chaotic mosaic." Marraiges crumble; silences replace language, and the children affected by the tragedy struggle to regain their bearings. Anthony's cousin Belinda is haunted by the absence of her twin sister, and it is with great difficulty that she emerges as an intact adult.

Hegi is masterful in her recreation of the Bronx during the McCarthy scare of the early 1950s. Her use of dialogue advances a crisp narrative, and she seems to have a genuinely compassionate sensitivity for the life of a child whose dreams are altered first by family circumstances and then by tragedy. Anthony's mother, Leonora, is by far the most complicated and satisfying of the adult characters of the novel.

Less convincing is the author's treatment of Anthony's aunt Floria. Over one-third of the novel explores her psychological metamorphosis, and much of that simply doesn't work. Floria's extended stay in Italy devolves into maudlin melodrama; her death is depicted in a quasi-Joycean stream of consciousness that is contrived and predictable. Hegi doesn't seem to realize that the greatest strength of "Sacred Time" is its treatment of serious emotional questions through a powerful narrative. When she overwrites or gets bogged down in psychobabble, her novel becomes mundane.

Early in the novel, the child Anthony rejoices at the stories told by his family. His mother and aunt compete to retell, embellish and recreate "one thread of a story and spin it along." With "passion," family members listen, then "leap into a story and spin it along." "Sacred Time" succeeds because it advances Anthony's odyssey through the thread of a story, a thread which finds itself in the lives of the entire Amedeo family. That thread of hidden fear, unspoken grief and unforgiven remorse, when stitched properly, makes this a novel worth reading and remembering.

In 1953, seven years old Anthony Amedeo lives what he perceives is the good life in his Bronx neighborhood as the only child. His father has a thriving catering business and his stay at home mother dotes on Anthony. Anthony's idyllic childhood changes when his Uncle Malcolm is back behind bars, forcing Aunt Floria and their eight-year-old twin daughters to move into the Amedeo fifth floor apartment; the twins share Anthony's previously private room. Not long afterward, one of the twins falls out a window to her death.

The tragedy haunts Anthony over the next four plus decades as he not only witnessed the fall of his cousin and never quite got over that first touch of death, his mother and aunt believed he pushed his cousin out the window. Living with that undeclared sentencing by his beloved family, Anthony feels all alone in spite of marriage and success as a chef.

Though a bit confusing as there are three eras not smoothly transitioned, SACRED TIME is a remarkable look at how one event lasting seconds can have major impact over the lives of those immediately involved and even later on others for example spouses. On a mega level such as 9/11 this seems obvious, but Ursula Hegi's message is that on the micro family level, relationships are impacted by events such as the death of the twin. The cast is a delightful Italian-American Bronx family who never look at Anthony the same way after his cousin's death. However, the biggest bearer of misfortune besides the victim is Anthony, who perceives what his loved ones believe of him. This is a strong character study of the long term consequences of a tragedy.

I consider this book to be one of the most interesting and well-written books I've read in last few years. I loved the idea of showing the same events from different points of view - different people and different times. I agree with one of the reviewers - I did not want this book to end. Very non-standard vision and presentation. I read 'The Stones from the River' first and then started reading all the books by Ursula Hegi. This one was the most un-expected one. Loved the book, and suggest everybody who enjoys a real literature (vs predictable melodrama/thriller/love story that you forget a minute you put the book down) to read it.

But at times it felt a little hard to follow. The book starts off from the point of view of Anthony as a child. His uncle Malcolm has been sent Elsewhere (to jail) and his father Victor lets his sister Floria and her twin daughters stay with them while they have to deal with Malcolm being gone. Anthony just wants them to leave, as the twins constantly bicker, torment him, and take his things. When his father brings home the stencil kit he's wanted, the twins take it instead and play with it. That sets in motion the tragic event that changes his family forever, the death of Bianca.

The jump in generations and narrations were a little difficult for me to follow at first. Especially the jump from Anthony's point of view to his mother Leonora's while she sleeps with her lover. The whole subplot of Victor's affair bothered me. Maybe it was just the quick leap from Anthony's childhood to Victor's affair and near new marriage. Following the death of his niece makes it a little more understandable but that part I wanted to skip past.

All throughout the book I was waiting for Anthony to confess the part he had in Bianca's death. Especially in scenes where he's just with Belinda, the other twin. When you get to the end of the book, when it's just Anthony and his mother still around, his father, aunt, and uncle having passed away, he realizes that his mother has known all along what he did.

Two parts of the book really stood out for me. The first being Belinda's guilt and shame at having stolen a present her sister had been given, an onyx giraffe. She had taken it because she wanted it but her sister died, and in her eyes that made her a thief. Her guilt was wonderfully written. The second part being Anthony describing his hunting trip with his father and grandfather shortly after Bianca's death. He tells that his grandfather during the trip told him it's not fun to kill any living thing. To me that really showed how some of the family felt about Anthony and Bianca.

It was a good book and I might pick it up again but the real save came from Leonora's character to me. She starts off as a firecracker and is still that same firecracker at the end of the book, despite the fact that she must be in her 70s at least. She is taking self defense classes and still keeps her boytoy lover around after Victor's death. She is a very stubborn character but that makes her appealing. She has her own guilts and secrets and when one comes out it just shows what made her strong.

I don't know if I'll get any more Ursula Hegi book but this one wasn't too bad in my eyes.

Came quickly in good condition. I was notified by ther seller when it was shipped.

I love all of Ms. Hegi's books and this one was no exception! We start out with a young boy and his point of view. He has an Italian family and they are very amusing. He is an only child, but he has two cousins whom are twins. They are girls though. The girls and his Aunt Floria have no where to go. So they end up living with Anthony and his family. What happens will mark everyone for the rest of their lives, each in their own way.

I love different writing styles and didn't find it all upsetting for this one to jump ahead. Ms Hegi writes so well you didn't even notice. I got enough of a glimpse of everyone I just wish it didn't have to end. I wish I would have gotten this book sooner is my ONLY regret!

Anthony, seven years old, is fairly content. His father has a good catering business and his mother and grandparents dote on him. He even likes his cousins, eight-year-old Belinda and Bianca, in small doses. Now Christmas is coming, though, and his uncle is in jail again, so his aunt and cousins have moved in with his family. Anthony is crowded out of his space. He has to share his room with his cousins, and his aunt's sewing materials are taking up much of the apartment's living room. Anthony also picks up on his mother's irritation at having to take in their relatives, which adds to his overall stress. One day while Anthony and Bianca are alone in a room, she falls out of the sixth-floor window to her death.

This tragedy affects the entire family. Anthony is guilty about his part in Bianca's death, and weighted down by his family's unspoken belief that he pushed her. Belinda is guilty of picking a fight with her twin just before her death, and she stands as a permanent reminder of what the family has lost. The twins' father is guilty of having been in prison when his daughter died, unable to even attend the funeral. Anthony's parents and aunt all feel as though they should have been able to do something to avert this tragedy.

The writing in this story was beautiful, and it was interesting to read events from different points of view. However, it was sad to read about a family that was broken and even over the course of decades, was unable to fix itself. It seems that if Anthony had been encouraged to tell his story, perhaps he, at least, could have been able to heal. Instead, his cousin's death haunted him and ended up affecting the family he started as well as the family in which he grew up.