Revolutionary Road by Richard Yates

From Amazon's product description: From the moment of its publication in 1961, Revolutionary Road was hailed as a masterpiece of realistic fiction and as the most evocative portrayal of the opulent desolation of the American suburbs. It's the story of Frank and April Wheeler, a bright, beautiful, and talented couple who have lived on the assumption that greatness is only just around the corner. With heartbreaking compassion and remorseless clarity, Richard Yates shows how Frank and April mortgage their spiritual birthright, betraying not only each other, but their best selves.

Wow, what a sad book, and it's not even an Oprah pick. This story was sad but thinking back, I'm not even sure if I cried. I didn't fall in love with this couple. Yates shows us in great detail the breakdown of their marriage but I didn't really care enough about the marriage to be affected by it. There were some glimpses into their pasts that may have made me more sympathetic to them if there had been more of it but the glimpses weren't enough for me to justify their behavior. Now, I'm not made of stone, the ending got to me, not because of April but because of what April does - that was terrible. Now that I have read it, I understand why when I asked my practically perfect friend, Mary Poppins, if she liked it, she said, "Well, it's hard to say." It's not a book you "like" because the subject matter doesn't fit with "like" but it is a satisfying read and I'm glad I read it.

The Nurse in my office says the movie was great so I'll have to add this title to the list of movies I ought to watch!

This book is my "R" for the A-Z Reading Challenge and ..drum roll please...I've completed it! Click on the logo to see all the books I read.





This is one of the books on my list for Fall Into Reading 2009. Click on the logo to see my progress.