Case Histories
By Kate Atkinson
Little, Brown, and Company September 2008
310 pages
From my personal library...hooray
Jackson Brodie is a private detective attempting to
juggle several cases. At the beginning of the novel, the reader is presented
with three stories. In the first, a young girl goes missing after she and her
sister camp out in the backyard in a tent. In the next, a young woman is
murdered while interning in her father’s office. In the third, a young woman
goes to prison for murdering her husband with an axe in view of their baby
girl. As Jackson becomes makes progress in the cases, he discovers that they
are more connected than he could have ever imagined.
This novel is a mystery, but more importantly it is a
story about the people who are left behind after tragedy. While Jackson does
investigate the crimes, he also provides compassion and understanding for the
survivors. He empathizes with his
clients because he too has experienced loss when his older sister was brutally
raped and murdered. His kindness and his attempt to be a good father are his
strong points, but our hero is very much flawed. He can’t stop fantasizing
about the women he encounters and he is terrified that his ex-wife and the new
man in her life will take his daughter away from him. He thinks that "she wouldn't be the same Marlee in twelve months' time: she would have different skin and different hair, she would have outgrown the shoes and the clothes she was wearing, she would have new buzzwords (New Zealand words), and she might not like Harry Potter anymore. But she would still be Marlee. She just wouldn't be the same."
The thing I found most fascinating about this novel is
the way that so many of the characters sit on the edge of likeability. I found
myself often thinking that I didn’t really like many of the characters. In
spite of this, I had a very serious need to find out what happened to them and
how they were connected. These are very deeply injured people whose lives
have been destroyed. The wreckage is not pretty, but Ms. Atkinson portrays it with
compassion and sometimes humor.
This is a really interesting novel. I went back and forth
trying to decide if I liked it or not. At times, I was not particularly enthusiastic
about continuing. I think that’s because there is little imminent danger. These
cases are cold and their resolution will likely not change anything in the
present. I’m glad I stuck with it, though. The mysteries are wrapped up by the
end, some more predictably than others. The characters will make you
uncomfortable, make you wince, and make you think about putting this book down,
but ultimately this is a good book. I will warn that it takes some time to get
used to the peculiarities of the novel, the style, and the characters.
This is the first Jackson Brodie novel, and the first
book I have read by this author. I somehow already own the third book, so I
will be searching out the second. Atkinson is a good writer, with interesting
style and quirks. While Case Histories
takes some time to get comfortable with, it’s worth the read.
Friends, as you read this I am on my way to the wonderful state of Maryland. Why is it so wonderful, you ask? Why, it's because my bestest friend Becca lives there. I will be visiting her today and Saturday (husbands included). Then on Sunday, there will be church and a hymn sing with a potluck. Try not to be too jealous...
Have an amazing weekend, friends. I'll be back on Monday. See you then!
This book has never appealed to me because I am not a mystery reader, so I'm glad to see it is about more than just that....
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