mikehalliday

Another stunningly crafted book from Erdrich. I loved "The Master Butcher Singers Club" and was excited to read this. The prose is beautiful, as always: poetic, but never florid. But unlike "The Master Butcher Singers Club," which is a story with many characters, their stories woven together over decades, "Shadow Tag" is a densely compact story of a family and a relationship over a short period of time. Irene discovers that Gil has been reading her diary, and in an effort to extricate herself and gain control over him, she begins filling the diary he reads with lies and stories, while at the same time, keeping her own "real" diary in a safe deposit box. Meanwhile, their three children cope with the disintegration of their family in their own way. Publishers Weekly states: "Erdrich ties her various themes together with an intriguing metaphor—riffing on Native American beliefs about portraits as shadows and shadows as souls—while her steady pacing and remarkable insight into the inner lives of children combine to make this a satisfying and compelling novel." I heartily concur. A short, complex, and innovative book.

2022-11-14 13:57