An American Marriage
I think I am in the minority here when I say I didn’t really enjoy this book that much. To be honest here, after reading half of the novel, I had to look up the title to make sure this was the novel that everyone was raving about.
It’s about injustice, marriage and compromise. I wasn’t rooting for anyone in this novel, not because I didn’t like them, it was because I believed everything was too new for the characters and I didn’t think they knew themselves who they were.
Take Celestial for example. She was a new bride, a woman who was trying to create her own line of dolls and also trying to market them. All of this in one year. Her new husband Roy, was also trying on his new role of being a husband. I thought Roy enjoyed being a top dog amongst both males and females. What was beneath that role, I don’t think he truly knew but he liked to be on top. Their friend Dre carried a lot of history that couldn’t be swept under the rug. He didn’t want to go away, he saw a void and filled it. I wondered if he became too comfortable or too reliable to Celestial when Roy was out of the picture? Was it fear of the unknown that brought them closer together?
I was glad when Roy was finally released. I was happy that Celestial family stood by his side throughout the whole ordeal. I was hoping for a totally different ending to this novel. One that put everyone on neutral ground.
I received a copy of this novel from NetGalley and Algonquin Books in exchange for an honest opinion.
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