The Corrections (Jonathan Franzen)

Tales of the dysfunctional family have been all the rage for the last few years. Yes, yes, I get it. We're all dysfunctional in our own little ways and usually, under the quirkiness and neruosis, you find the true emotions that lie underneath--love, family.... Not in this book. A very interesting and well-written story centering around a family whose matriarch just wants everyone back in suburban mid-West for one last Christmas together. The separate plotlines of the three children are all complex and intriguing as Franzen switches back and forth between his family of characters. When in one character's shoes, you see the horrid things the others do and what pain lies in the interior of the person you inhabit. But then it shifts and you can't help but think the character whose mind you were in before is utterly reprehensible. A quick read--it definitely sucks you in, your nose in the crease of the spine--but on the whole unfufilling to me for one reason. In the end, I could not relate to any of these creatures that passed themselves off as human beings. I pitied them. I felt the interest of a scientist looking at a new species under the microscope. But they were nasty, mean people and I didn't identify with them at all. I believe that may be a main theme of the book but, personally, I am thankful that the people Franzen sculpts exist only within those pages, which I can easily close, leaving them caged between front and back cover, safe on the shelf.