An Absence So Great (2010)

Book Info

Author

Jane Kirkpatrick

Genre

Historical Fiction

Series

Portraits of the Heart

Rating

3.71 of 5 Votes: 2

Your rating

ISBN

1578569818 (ISBN13: 9781578569816)

Language

English

Publisher

WaterBrook Press

Shops

Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble

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About book An Absence So Great (2010)

I'm a real Jane Kirkpatrick fan, but this is not one of her best. Jessie is young and a photographer with dreams of owning her own studio. It's the early 1900's and her mentor has complicated her life by also becoming a man she loves but can't have due to his already being married. The story chronicles her career and her on again-off again relationship with Fred Brower. Adding to the stickiness is his emotionally fragile wife who is easy to dislike and set aside. Parts of this were so hard to believe- the independence Jessie ached for and was able to enjoy. The seemingly lucrative profession that being a photographer seemed to be. His children's belligerence, and her parents leniency. It just didn't strike me as very realistic for the time. Interesting from the standpoint of its portrayal of family life in a part of the world I love, during a time of great change in American society and culture. That was enough to keep me engaged. The writing was okay. I might read another work by this author. But I'm not craving the experience or calling this a "must-read". If you are interested in a story about a middle family and society in the Midwestern US during the early 1900s, you may enjoy it.