Black and Blue (Oprah's Book Club)
by Anna Quindlen
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Book Reviews of Black and Blue (Oprah's Book Club)
Book Review: The Color of Violence
Summary: 5 Stars
Black and blue--for kids, the colors of bumped knees and elbows--for Fran, the marks of her husband's violence and her terrible secret. Fran is a battered woman, a victim of the syndrome in which a woman is convinced that if she behaved better, her husband would stop. But it never works that way.
Quindlen's novel is a psychological portrait of a woman who decides to escape. Taken in by a secret organization that provides a new identity to people like her, Fran relocates to Florida with her 12 year old son Robert. It's a dangerous endeavor--Fran's husband is a cop, and technically she's stolen his child. For months Fran and her son live a life of almost unbearable tension, hiding but waiting for the inevitable. Quindlen does an admirable job of keeping the suspense high while Fran and her son live a very ordinary life. How hard this is for a young boy--Robert knows why they're in hiding, but can't help loving and missing his father.
This is a tough book, and there are no pat answers. The law is ill-equipped to deal with problems that have deep roots in the perpetrator's childhood. Quindlen, author of the wonderful "Life in the 30's" column in the NY Times for so many years, does a wonderful job portraying the dilemma. It's a sad book, but well worth your time.
Book Review: Fran wasn't sympathetic enough
Summary: 2 Stars
I was sympathetic to Fran, of course, but she seemed hostile towards the very people who were trying to help her. And it was deeply disturbing to me when she implies that her new boyfriend might seem a little dull to her after the danger and excitement of being with her husband. I had to read that over again to make sure I read what I thought I had read. And she comes right out and says that if her son turns out to be an abuser, she won't even feel sorry for the women he abuses -- she loves her son too much to care about who he might hurt. She also admits that she knew, even before they got married, that it was inevitable that her husband was going to abuse her. I think Fran was pretty twisted, herself. Plus, the author writes as though this book is a huge expose of spouse abuse when the fact is, we read about it every day and are completely aware that it exists, and that there are numerous agencies available for women to turn to. Come on, Ms. Quindlen, you haven't uncovered something new! I would like to have seen more of the sister; she seemed more interesting than Fran. The book was okay, though; I finished it. (I recently read that 40% of cops are wife beaters! I'm not sure I believe it... Maybe I just don't WANT to believe it...)Book Review: Black and Blue with flying colors
Summary: 5 Stars
Anna Quindlen - a literary treasure of our time.
The book tells the story of an abused woman who has had enough and runs away from her husband, a police officer. She takes her son with her. She coincidentally finds an organization that helps women like herself to start a new life - an organization that claims that their program is more efficient than the witness protection program. The story goes back and forth from her new (completely new) life, and flashbacks to her life of abuse. What was so interesting about the story-telling was that there was the constant wondering of whether this husband of hers would find her. As a reader, I was sweating with the main character, everytime the phone rang or when there were strangers or policemen at her son's school. A true page-turner.
Quindlen's set up of the characters were so real that when the characters spoke, (call me crazy) I could imagine what kind of voice they'd have if I were to really hear them in person.
Even if you're not a fan of this genre or this subject matter, this book is an awesome piece of literature. Read it.
Book Review: Running Scared... Running Out of Time
Summary: 5 Stars
BLACK AND BLUE is a well written, perfectly paced story with characters a reader cannot help but fall in love with, and yes, hate. It is told from the point of view of Fran, a wife and a mother who struggles between the fine lines of love, loyalty, hatred, and fear. Abused and battered by her husband she struggles with how best to protect herself and most importantly to her, her child.
She finds herself on the run with her son, but always looking around her shoulder, knowing that for now, she may be one step ahead of her abusive husband, but constantly fearful that it cannot last, that he will find them if not today, then maybe tomorrow. And all the while as she finds herself constantly scanning the crowds around her, looking for that one familiar face that would have the power to doom her, she struggles with her son and his confusion over his new life without his beloved father.
A stunning tale that is sure to captivate you. A must read for everyone.
Thank you Anna for such a great read.
Book Review: A better treatment would have been to present the batterer's interior experience as well
Summary: 3 Stars
Spousal abuse is such a tough topic and this book is a sincere (I think) attempt to make the problem better known and better understood. The most realistic character in the book is the son, who loves both parents so much and lives in the shadow of their awful relationship. The victim's sister is also well drawn. But the victim herself, as narrator as well as protagonist, is still not fully sketched. And everything that happens to her in her new life is a bit too ideal. Then the batterer cop husband is really just a stereotype -- the nasty, hard drinkin', hard lovin' guy who treats his family as possessions. Someone else mentioned that it read like a Lifetime made-for-tv drama, and I would have to agree. That said, the topic is important enough that the book has likely done some good in reaching a broad audience and raising awareness of the issue. It just fails to explain it very well or to offer much insight on how to rectify the matter.